Come Back to Me
by DarthMittens
Summary: As Voldemort dies, he hits Harry with a spell that blasts him to an alternate universe where Voldemort never existed. Everything seems good until he learns two things: 1. He's in love with Hermione Granger, and 2. She's a muggle who has never met him.
1. An Ending Becomes a Beginning

**A/N: Yay, a new longer story! And I'm actually working on 'Hermione, I Miss You' right now for those of you interested in seeing it continued!**

**Come Back to Me**

**Chapter 1 – An Ending Becomes a Beginning**

"Hermione, come back to me," Harry panted, wiping the sweat, soot, and tears out of his eyes, his throat burning. Hogwarts was on fire and dead bodies, human and not, littered the grounds around them. "You promised…" he stopped to cough. "You promised you wouldn't leave me. You said you wouldn't end up like Ron if I let you fight," he said softly. "So please, come back to me." A single tear dropped onto her still face and carved a track through the dirt marring it. "Hermione…come back to me!" he cried.

"She's dead, Potter!" a voice cackled from behind her. "And you'll be joining her right now! _Avada Kedavra!"_

Harry angrily whirled around shot to his feet, his magic blasting the spell away from him. Voldemort froze, shocked, and backed up as the ground trembled under Harry's feet. The raw power he was exuding was absolutely overwhelming.

Harry thought of nothing but killing this man who had ruined and ended the lives of so many, including his two best friends.

"You think your tricks will intimidate me, fool?" Voldemort shouted, fear driving him to raise his wand again.

Before he could cast a spell though, a giant burst of magic completely disintegrated half of his body below the neck. And as he started dying, his first thought was, _My horcruxes…gone?_ He didn't know how, but the idiot boy-who-lived had managed to destroy all of his fallbacks. And now…now he was dying.

He couldn't let it end like this. He was Lord Voldemort. He didn't lose. He didn't die. Certainly not to the hands of a seventeen-year-old, at that.

No…he wouldn't lose.

As the remainder of his body fell to the ground, he pointed his wand at Harry and flourished it, not knowing what he was doing but pouring every last bit of magic into it that he could.

He wouldn't lose.

The magic slammed into Harry's magic and let out a burst of bright light so hot that it seared Voldemort, who closed his eyes to preserve them for the last few seconds of his life. When his body hit the ground, the Dark Lord found just enough strength to open his eyes one last time, and the ghost of a grin found its way onto his face when he saw that Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, was no more.

That was right. He didn't lose in the end.

* * *

"Harry," a gentle voice said. "Harry, it's time to wake up. You'll be late to the Hogwarts Express."

Harry shot up out of bed, sweat drenching him and a wild look in his eyes.

The beautiful redheaded woman, who Harry assumed was the owner of the voice, brought a soft hand to his forehead. "Harry, are you alright? You're not too hot…did you have a nightmare?"

Was that what it was? Harry couldn't…quite…remember. Something about a Dark Lord named Voldemort and Hermione…

"Hermione!" he shouted.

That was right. He had just fought the final battle. He had been fighting Voldemort and Hermione had taken a Killing Curse meant for him. He had destroyed Voldemort, and then…and then…

"Harry?" the woman said.

"Ma'am, you have to tell me what happened," Harry said anxiously, trying to climb out of bed.

But she sat him back down and folded her arms. "Did you just call me ma'am, Harry?" she said, offended. Or so Harry thought, for then she sniffed and grinned at him. "At the very least you should call your mother 'miss.' I'm not _that_ old."

Harry froze, looking at the woman in shock. _Mother?_ "_Mother?"_ he said, repeating his thought aloud. "As in…Lily Potter mother?"

Lily's smile faltered. "Harry, are you okay?"

Harry slowly looked around the room he was currently in, taking in everything at once. The room was filled with items that were completely to his tastes and showed the wear and tear of a younger boy who had once lived there. This was his room. He had grown up in it. This was his mother, who was killed when he was a child.

Yet here she was.

He reached a hand out in awe and gently touched her face, his eyes widening when he discovered she wasn't an apparition but was actually right in front of him. "Mum," he said, the word feeling oddly comfortable as it passed through his lips.

Lily grabbed his hand. "You're really starting to worry me here, Harry," she said. "Am I going to have to have Madam Pomfrey check up on you first thing at school?"

Harry ignored her and stood up, walking towards the door and wondering if his father was alive. "Mum? Is dad…well, you know…"

Lily sighed. "Sorry Harry, but James got called into an emergency meeting today and won't be here to see you off. Winter break will come before you know it, though."

A grin began to split Harry's face as he opened the door of his room and looked down the hallway. He didn't know how it had happened, but he had somehow ended up in an alternate universe where his parents were still alive.

A thought struck him. "What happened to Voldemort?"

"Voldemort?" Lily asked, cocking her head in thought. After thinking hard for a few seconds, she finally shook her head and said, "You're awake now, dear. I don't know what kind of dream you had but it sounds like it was a doozy. Now hurry up. You're all packed up and ready to go, so just grab your stuff and we'll apparate to nine and three quarters."

This was truly amazing. Not only were his parents still alive, but there was no Voldemort? This was absolutely amazing! Did that mean, too, that Ron and Hermione and everybody who died in the Final Battle were all alive and okay?

Still. "How did this happen?" he asked out loud.

Lily shook her head. "Harry, I don't know what you're talking about, but get your stuff ready. Time to go."

"Right," he said, still overwhelmed. He looked around, spotted some bags, and picked them up, then smiled at his mother. "Ready."

She raised an eyebrow. "And Hedwig?"

"Oh," said Harry, grinning when he saw that his faithful owl was alive and healthy.

Lily took a deep breath. "Your last time going to platform nine and three quarters, Harry. You ready?"

Harry glanced at the thing in his hands, looked up at his mother, then did a double-take back at his items. "Er…where's my broom?"

"Your what?" Lily asked, confused.

Harry almost said, _Don't tell me there's no flying in this universe!_ "My…you know…my broom…to fly?" he said, making a small flying motion with his hand.

"I know what a broom is dear, I just wonder why you need one," Lily said.

Harry frowned. "How would I play Quidditch without a broom, mum?"

Lily froze. "You want to play Quidditch, Harry?" she whispered.

This time Harry froze. Was Quidditch some sort of taboo here? "Erm…yes?" he said hesitantly.

She ran up and hugged him. "Your father will be so happy! I knew you'd eventually come out of your shell!"

_My shell?_ Harry did his best to hide his confusion, and as he did, he realized something. _My mother is hugging me_. He didn't know exactly how to describe it, but it was truly the most amazing thing he had ever felt in his life. A warm feeling spread through him and he hugged her back, happiness radiating throughout his body. He was doing something he thought he would never have the chance to do in his life: he was actually hugging his mother.

And he said the words he had always wanted to say. "I love you, mum."

She pulled back and looked at him, a smile on her face. She ruffled his hair and said, "I love you too, Harry." She threw him off balance when she suddenly side-along apparated them to platform 9¾ , and then said, "We don't have the time to get you a broom before you go, so your father and I will get you one and send it to you, okay?"

"You'll buy me a broom before I get on the team?" he asked, impressed.

She smiled at him. Harry knew that smile, too; it was a smile that said she was proud of him. He didn't know what he had done to deserve it, but it felt really good. "You'll make the team," she said.

Harry was glad for her vote of confidence. He hugged her and she hugged him back, saying, "Have a great year as Head Boy, Harry."

Once again, Harry froze. _Head Boy?_ "Thanks," he said quickly so he didn't worry her again. Then, trying to seem natural, added, "I'll uh…see you over break."

As he started walking toward the train, he turned back to Lily. Now that the shock was beginning to wear off, he realized he didn't want to leave for school. His mother and father were_ this _close to him now, and he had to go to school?

His mother smiled sympathetically. "It's alright, Harry. It'll be better than last year, I promise. I spoke to Dumbledore for you."

Harry's face immediately flamed. His mother was fighting his fights for him? And what had this universe's Harry done that had made last year so bad? He opened his mouth to tell her he didn't want to go anyway, then thought of how she might be disappointed. At least, he thought she would. So he smiled at her, taking her alive and healthy image in one more time, and said, "Bye, mum."

"We'll see you over winter break, Harry," she said, and he nodded and turned around.

He got back on the train without looking back, but once he was on he ran to an empty compartment and looked at his mother as the train began to depart. As if she knew he would do that, her eyes found him immediately and she waved him off the entire time until the train rounded the first bend.

Harry smiled, sighed, and sat down, only noticing then that there was now somebody else in the compartment with him. "Still waving to your mummy, Potter," Malfoy spat. At least some things were the same. "Going to miss her changing your nappies?"

"Looks like this year is going to be just as fun as the last," said another voice, which belonged to a tall, red-headed boy who Harry recognized immediately.

"Ron," he said with relief. He was alive!

"Ron?" he said. "Since when have you addressed me by my first name, Potter?"

_Woah, what?_ Malfoy came up to him and put his foot on the edge of the seat right between Harry's legs as he tried to figure out what was going on. He put his elbow on his knee and leaned in close to Harry, then sneered and said, "And now that you're Head Boy, you're going to let us get away with whatever we went, we clear?"

Harry immediately pushed Malfoy off of his chair and drew his wand. Ron began laughing. "Remember the last time you tried this, Potter?"

Harry snorted. "I've been brushing up on my skills this summer."

They drew their wands, pointing them at him, looking supremely smug. Oh, how Harry couldn't wait to wipe the smirks off of their faces. Apparently this universe's Harry wasn't made of much, but these two were about to learn that this universe's Harry had undergone a major transformation over the summer.

Before either of them could do anything, he pointed his wand at Malfoy's face and yelled, "_Stupefy!"_

Malfoy was blasted back into the hallway, completely unconscious. Harry grinned at Ron, who was staring at him in shock, and twirled his wand between in his fingers. "Show me what you've got, Weasley."

He took up a defensive stance. Ron may have been his best mate in his old life, but he would gladly have Ron be his enemy if it meant he could still be alive. Ron blinked a couple times at him as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing, turned to look at Malfoy's unconscious form, then smiled weakly at Harry. "Look, I'm just going to leave now, Potter. Good luck as Head Boy, yeah?"

Harry grinned at him. "I don't really need luck, Weasley," he said, though with no malice behind it. This seemed like weird-play acting. He couldn't really feel disdain for Ron, no matter how he must have treated the other Harry.

Harry sighed and sat down, running his hand through his hair as he did so. Everything that was different here was so overwhelming. He really didn't know what to expect next; perhaps finding out that he was a Slytherin?

Okay, so maybe he didn't think it would be that extreme, but things in this Voldemort-free universe were definitely a bit odd.

"You seem to have an unusual amount of wrackspurts flitting about your head, Harry," an incredibly familiar voice said dreamily. There was no mistaking Luna no matter which universe you were in. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, fine," he said, relieved that she was the same.

Luna frowned. "I don't think that's true, Harry," she said. "You seem to have a lot going on in your mind." There was silence for a moment. "Does it have anything to do with the fact that you aren't the same Harry?"

Harry froze. How did she…well, Harry figured, she was Luna after all. And, since she was undoubtedly the same Luna and wouldn't tell anybody else, he said, "It has a lot to do with that, actually," he said. This could be the perfect opportunity to let all this out for somebody else to hear. The second one would be Hermione. She would know how to handle a transition like this. There had to be a book on it somewhere.

Harry snapped out of his thoughts when he realized that Luna was still waiting for more. "A lot of everything I know and knew is different. It's kind of…overwhelming," he said.

Luna slowly nodded. She was quiet for a minute, then looked at him with those surprisingly piercing eyes of hers and said, "I think you just need to take everything as it comes. You'll come to understand and appreciate it all in time."

She stood up and held her hand out for a handshake. Harry hesitantly complied with her wishes.

"Hello, Harry, I'm Luna Lovegood," she said, shaking his hand. She waited for some sort of response, and when Harry didn't give it to her, she said, "I'm trying to help you, Harry. You need to adapt to the new aspects of life in this universe. I'm sure the other me that you knew is different from me."

Harry blinked, trying to make sense of exactly what she was saying. He had a feeling it would be futile to try to explain to Luna that she hadn't changed even one bit. So he shook her hand back and said, "Hello Luna Lovegood, I'm Harry Potter. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Luna finally released his hand. "See, it's not that hard, is it?" she said.

Harry collapsed back onto the seat and Luna took the one across from him. "I guess not," Harry said.

There was silence for a long minute, then Harry said, as a way to break the silence, "So did you come into this compartment to hang out with me? Or…"

"No," said Luna with a smile on her face.

Harry waited for more, then when he realized she wasn't going to continue, asked "Then what are you in here for?"

"The Head Girl sent me to fetch you for the start of the prefects meeting," she said. "You are Head Boy after all."

Leave it to Luna to have to be prompted to have to tell him something important. He stood up and said, "Thanks a lot, Luna. Catch you later."

"Goodbye, Harry," she said before serenely turning her head and looking out of the window.

Harry shrugged and began walking down the hallway, frowning at the amount of people who didn't seem to notice him, evidenced by the fact that people seemed to be bumping into him quite hard. Then he realized that they did notice him, and this was a form of bullying.

He chuckled and shook his head. These 'bullies' had nothing on Voldemort.

Harry knew from what he had heard from Ron and Hermione that the prefects' compartment was the very front compartment, so he made his way up there, ignoring all of the shouts and jeers at him as he passed.

When he opened the door, he was surprised to find that the meeting hadn't started yet. What he was met with instead was a very impatient-looking girl with brown hair pulled up into a loose bun and rectangular glasses that seemed to frame her face perfectly, along with the head girl badge pinned to her shirt. Harry almost called her Hermione, then realized that although she did look like her at first glance and he had been expecting the Head Girl to be her, this woman was most certainly not his best friend. In fact, he didn't know who this person was, but she was certainly channeling Hermione's impatience very well.

"Erm…" he said awkwardly as everybody's eyes turned to him. "S-sorry I'm late."

The girl let out an annoyed huff. "Thank you for showing up when you felt like it, Harry," she said, surprising him. Apparently not everyone hated him here.

In fact, the way she said his name was very familiar. He had heard that voice say Harry many times before. He looked at her again, very surprised as recognition dawned on him, and incredulously said, "_Lavender_?"

She looked at him like he was going crazy. "We've only been going to school together for six years now, Harry," she said. "Everything all right over there?"

He shook his head quickly. "Yeah," he replied immediately, a bit flustered. So while Malfoy was very much the same, Lavender was quite different. "I mean…you just…well…let's start then."

Lavender cleared her throat and adjusted her glasses in a very official manner, then gave Harry one last disapproving look before starting the meeting. Harry sat watching, amazed at how Lavender was so much more mature in this universe than his own. She conducted the meeting with ease and a smile on her face, all evidence of her normal ditzyness completely gone.

After she was done and the prefects had left the compartment, Lavender turned to Harry and smiled. "You excited for this year, Harry?" she asked. "We get a common room all to ourselves!"

Harry honestly couldn't tell if she was being sarcastic.

"I'm glad we'll get to spend some more time together," she continued. "You're a good guy, and I wish we could have been sorted into the same house."

Harry blinked, though he really wasn't taken aback. There were so many weird things going on here and this was probably one of the most normal. Judging by how she looked and acted, she was probably a Ravenclaw. "Well, thanks," he replied humbly.

She tilted her head and smiled at him, then said, "What happened over the summer that changed you so much?"

Harry was somehow caught off-guard yet again. She could tell from this little of an interaction? He smiled back at her and cryptically said, "You know, it's just one of those things."

She made a thoughtful noise and stood up. "Fair enough," she said with a shrug. When she got to the door, she smiled at him over her shoulder and said, "See you at school."

He nodded at her and she left the compartment, leaving Harry alone again. After everything that had already happened today, it seemed that his previous life had taken place…well, a lifetime ago. Everything new here shouted to him that this was a prime opportunity for a fresh start, and his mind seemed to be doing its best to bury his past in the deepest recesses of his mind.

The only memory that wouldn't go away was the feeling of Hermione's dead body in his arms. That may have been the single most horrifying moment of his life, and he figured he needed to see her alive once more to bury that memory for good. He wished there was some sort of erase function for his memories.

Life without Ron had been bad enough to be honest, but a life without Hermione would be a life without living. If he hadn't been blasted into this alternate universe, he didn't know what he would have done with his old life.

He probably would have killed himself.

The thought-train regarding Hermione wouldn't so slow down; in fact, it seemed to be picking up speed, and he soon found himself recalling their time together. Despite everything that had happened, up until the end of her life that had been the happiest seven years of his.

Soon enough Harry saw Hogwarts in the distance, and felt a nervous anticipation begin growing in his stomach. Once he got in the castle, he would be seeing Hermione again for the first time. Would she be the same, and would they be friends? And honestly, he didn't know how he would react. Also, he didn't know why he was feeling so nervous and over-thinking things. They were best friends – he didn't know why anything would be awkward about seeing her again.

The train came to a stop and Harry shook his head of his thoughts, now caught more off-guard than earlier. Why were his thoughts so weird about Hermione? He went over to a carriage and got in one, and was joined by several younger students – third years by the look of other students chatted about inane third-year things while Harry stared boredly at the castle, that pit of nervousness still growing in his stomach despite his efforts to try to get it to stop.

Once they arrived at the castle, Harry practically ran to the Great Hall, eagerness, anticipation, and nervousness all threatening to overwhelm him at once. He had already seen almost everyone else of importance, yet none of them held as much importance as she.

"Harry, are you going to come sit?" a voice Harry recognized as Luna's asked him from behind.

Without his eyes leaving the steady flow of students, he distractedly responded, "Yeah," and began walking towards the Gryffindor table.

"Harry, where are you going?" Luna asked from behind him.

This did make Harry turn around. "To the Gryffindor table, like I'm supposed to," he said, looking at her oddly.

She pointed to his chest. "Look at your robes, Harry. You might have been in Gryffindor, but the other Harry wasn't."

Harry quickly looked down at his robes and at the patch on breast, and his jaw dropped. "_Ravenclaw?_" he said, shocked. New universe or not, he figured there was no way he could be anything but a Gryffindor, let alone a Ravenclaw. If he had to guess a new house that he was in, he probably would have said Hufflepuff, since he didn't consider himself all too smart.

Luna smiled at him. "Yep," she said. "Come on."

Harry followed Luna to the Ravenclaw table and sat, noticing as he did so that everybody else who sat at the table left the two of them a wide berth. Harry didn't care though, and craned his neck toward the Gryffindor table to try to find Hermione's familiar curly hair.

Dumbledore began speaking and the sorting started without Harry paying attention at all. He looked at each and every head and all of the faces he could of everybody in the Great Hall, all without finding Hermione. He sighed and slumped down in his seat. There were just too many people and too many heads to be sure that he saw everybody – she had to be somewhere in the hall, after all.

After Dumbledore's speech came a delicious feast as normal, and Harry chatted with Luna about various things, many of them having to do about the imaginary creatures she seemed to be so captivated with. Harry liked talking to her though, since it seemed as though he could say anything he wanted and he wouldn't be judged. In fact, she thoroughly considered everything he said to her. None of the other students conversed with them, and to be honest Harry didn't really care about that. He was glad for it, since it gave him some time to think and process everything.

After the feast, everybody began going to their respective dormitories. Harry stayed, though, waiting for everybody to clear out so he could speak to Dumbledore. He was getting a little worried about the status of Hermione when he still hadn't spotted her by the end of dinner.

Dumbledore must have figured Harry was staying in the great hall so he could have a word with him, since he waited until everybody else had also cleared out. Once everybody was gone, Dumbledore said, "Something on your mind, Mr. Potter?"

Harry scratched the back of his neck. "I was just wondering which house Hermione is in," he said.

"Hermione…" Dumbledore said, grasping for the name.

"Hermione Granger," he said. "Super smart, in the same year as me."

Dumbledore's brows furrowed as he thought harder. Finally, after a few seconds, he looked up at Harry and said, "Nobody by the name of Granger attends this school, Mr. Potter."


	2. The Truth Hurts

**A/N: Thank you so much for the great reviews! I love them all!**

**Chapter 2 The Truth Hurts...and so Does a Fist**

Harry stared open-mouthed at the headmaster, horror and confusion clashing inside of him. "Wh-what?" he sputtered.

"There has never been anybody with the name of Granger who has attended this school, Mr. Potter," said Dumbledore gravely. He could probably sense the confusion that was overwhelming Harry and knew it was genuine.

"But...she...I..." he said lamely. "She's my best friend," he blurted.

Dumbledore was silent for a long moment, intently looking at Harry with those piercing blue eyes, then said, "Elaborate, Mr. Potter."

Harry considered lying; he seriously did. He was going to tell the headmaster some fantastic tale about how he had met and befriended a girl named Hermione Granger over the summer and had gotten her confused with Parvati.

Then he remembered what had happened the last time he lied to Dumbledore. How Ginny had almost died after being taken over by Lord Voldemort and how he needlessly endangered the lives of countless schoolmates because he was too afraid Dumbledore wouldn't take him seriously. But he had gotten a bit older now and realized that out of everyone who might possibly believe him (besides Luna, of course), Professor Dumbledore was at the top of that list. He was wise and knew much more magic than Harry ever hoped to, and Harry knew Dumbledore was probably his best chance if he wanted somebody to elaborate on the subject.

So the story came tumbling out, starting with when he was born in the alternate universe all the way up to that very moment. He did his best to convey the emotions and confusion he was feeling at the moment, too, and by the time he was done it was well past midnight. All the while Dumbledore sat and listened just as the Dumbledore in the other universe would have done, completely thinking through everything Harry said. It seemed Luna wasn't really the only one who hadn't changed, either.

"That," said Dumbledore slowly, still thinking, "is some very interesting magic, Harry." Harry let out a sigh of relief. Dumbledore believed him...

"I don't know how, but somehow the non-existence of this Lord Voldemort caused a muggleborn who was a witch in your universe to still be a muggle in this universe, if she even exists," Dumbledore explained. Harry's spirits dropped even more; he had never considered the possibility that Hermione might not have been born. "Naturally, she wouldn't know you or anything about the wizarding world, so that makes things even trickier. You could always go find her in the muggle world if you knew where she lived or anything..." he trailed off, though Harry knew he didn't want to be interrupted. "It seems as though she was a very close friend of yours."

"The best," Harry agreed.

Dumbledore smiled lightly at him. "I believe, Harry, that the ultimate choice is left up to you. I can only suggest, not demand, and only you know how important she is to you," he said.

With that he began walking away, leaving Harry even more confused than before. What sort of advice was that? And besides that...

"Sir?" Harry said, taking a step towards the Headmaster, who turned around.

"Yes, Mr. Potter?" Dumbledore replied as if he had known this was coming all along.

"Why aren't you more interested in this alternate universe and how I travelled between them than in my relationship with Hermione?" Harry asked.

"Well, Harry," said Dumbledore slowly. "I figured you already had a very difficult childhood as it was, and I wouldn't want you to have to elaborate further on what you had gone through. If you ever feel the need to talk about it, however, always remember that I am up in my office. I believe the password right now is Milky Way."

And with that Dumbledore left, leaving Harry by himself in the Great Hall, an odd numbness mixed with disbelief spreading through his body. How could Hermione not be a witch? How could she not be at Hogwarts? Had she even been born in this universe?

Harry, still numb with disbelief, stiffly walked out of the Great Hall. He frowned in confusion for a second when his mind caught up with the fact that he had no clue where the Heads' dormitories were. But when he looked around to gain his bearings, he found Lavender sitting down on the floor with her head back against the wall, her lips slightly parted and her glasses halfway down her nose as she softly breathed in and out in her sleep.

Harry crept over to her and kneeled down, then reached over and gently shook her. He was surprised and pleased at the fact that she had waited for him, glad that he had at least one friend in a castle that seemed to be full of people who wouldn't hesitate to make fun of him. He couldn't help but think that this universe's Harry must have seriously been a disappointment to his father in terms of carrying on the marauders. He had a feeling this Harry would have seriously made Lily proud, though.

Lavender awoke slowly, groaning as her eyes gradually focused on him. She was still half-asleep as she asked, "Harry?"

Harry smiled at her. "C'mon, Lavender. Up you get." He helped her to her feet and she rubbed her eyes sleepily while she yawned. "We have to get to bed for classes tomorrow."

"Right," she said groggily, taking the lead.

Thankfully, she seemed to be too tired to talk much, leaving Harry to further digest the information that Hermione wasn't a witch. What sort of Hogwarts could this be if Hermione wasn't around to scold him or help him or laugh at one of his jokes? How could this universe have been so incredibly right then turn out like this?

They arrived at a portrait of none other than the famous witch Morgan La Fey, and Lavender sleepily mumbled, "Weaker divided."

This was undoubtedly the password, for Morgan smiled at them and said, "I hope we'll have a fun year together, Harry and Lavender." They both nodded at her, Lavender too tired to answer and Harry too deep in thought. "And remember, just because it's only you two in the common room doesn't mean you can break school rules."

This snapped both of them out of their funks when they finally registered what she said, their eyes widening as they looked at each other then quickly looking back away, their cheeks stained red. "We won't," they both mumbled.

Morgan winked at them before swinging open, and they stubbornly looked each other in the eyes, gave a determined nod, and went into their common room.

The common room was undoubtedly smaller than the Gryffindor common room, though it was much nicer. It held a modern touch to it and had two chairs, one with Ravenclaw's colors and another with Gryffindor's. There was a nice big fireplace and a total of three tables in the room, one in between the two chairs and two others on opposite sides of the room which were desks and had smaller, though just as comfortable-looking chairs. Bookshelves covered every available inch of wall with books of all types and sizes, and the window was overlooking the lake.

The first thought that came to Harry's mind was that Hermione would have loved this room.

Lavender immediately shuffled off to the two side-by-side doors and went into the noticeably girlier one. Harry sighed, shrugged, and went into the other room, deciding he would explore the room at greater length the next day.

Even though the bed he slept in that night was the most comfortable he had ever felt, he couldn't fall asleep. And when he finally did, his thoughts were plagued by bushy brown hair.

o.O.o.O.o.O.o

Harry sat at the table at breakfast, still trying to rub the sleep out of his eyes. He really had slept poorly; too poorly to properly pay attention to the first day of school.

He didn't know why, but as he sat eating he felt a bit irritable. He stabbed at his food a little more viciously than normal and had a sneer on his face as he did everything to keep his thoughts off of Hermione, specifically the lack of her presence at Hogwarts. He didn't know why it was bugging him so much, but Hogwarts just felt weird without her.

Luna had sat next to him at first, but when it was clear that he didn't want to be in the presence of anybody she moved a little farther down to eat on her own, leaving Harry on his own again. He would have normally felt bad for her, but there was nothing on his thoughts but his bookworm best friend.

The first thing that managed to break those thoughts was the presence of a girl who decided to sit next to him, and when he didn't immediately acknowledge her presence, she began to frown at him. Harry, quite frankly, was sick and tired of all of these new aspects of the other Harry's life that he was supposed to know. He was tired of having to learn them, too. After all, he had already learned the most important one.

"What do you want?" Harry mumbled, failing to say it with the edge he originally intended. Even if he desperately wanted to be, there was no way he could be intentionally malicious.

Harry could sense the hurt rolling off of her, and took the chance to glance crosswise at her. She had fine black hair pulled up in a loose ponytail, wore Gryffindor robes, and had a face that was oddly familiar. High, sunken cheekbones with a sort of regal air to the rest of the face...where had he seen that before?

"I'm just wondering what I did that made you mad," the girl said soothingly, obviously not wanting to make his mood worse. "I want to know why you didn't come to our normal compartment on the train." She looked down at the table. "And why you still seem to be mad at me."

Harry sighed, dropped his fork on his plate, and said, "Look, it's not your fault, okay?" He couldn't have somebody feel guilty for something they didn't do. And if this person normally shared a compartment with him, did this mean she was his friend?

The girl searched Harry's eyes for a long moment. She brought her hand up and gently squeezed his cheeks, pulling his face down a little so she could peer into his eyes more intently. "Who are you?" she whispered, intense interest and keen observation lighting her eyes.  
Harry flushed red and angrily turned back to his food. "Harry James Potter," he said. "Age seventeen. Seventh year at Hogwarts. Ravenclaw. Head Boy. Who are you?" he said, chancing it.

She just ignored his last question, though. "That's not what I meant," she said. "I've never seen your eyes full of so much anger...and I've _never_seen you with so much confidence or...or...bravery," she said, grasping for the word. She seemed pleased enough with it.

Harry stabbed at his food again so he could use the motion as an excuse to think for a second. "Maybe I'm sick and tired of being timid," he finally said. "I have no reason to be scared anymore."

The girl blinked at him, then narrowed her eyes. "So you decided to turn into a jerk?" she said. "I'm glad you're finding some confidence and all, Harry, but that doesn't mean you should throw away a friend who's been there for you from the beginning."

It seemed that no matter what he said, nothing was helping Harry's situation. He opened his mouth to respond to her and looked her in the eyes, when something in the corner of his caught his attention. He stopped and looked at it, it being Luna writing something in the air.

"Cath-er-ine B-lack," Harry said slowly, squinting at the words to make sure he was reading them properly. Luna's air-writing wasn't exactly easy to read. "Black?" he muttered in surprise, looking back at her.

So _that's_why she looked so familiar! She must have been the daughter of Sirius or Regulus!

Only one way to test which one she was. "Prongs Jr. apologizes to the lady for being an arse," he said, grinning. Oh, how he hoped she was Sirius's.

She grinned back at him. "Little Padfoot will gladly accept your apology," she said, making his heart swell. So Sirius was alive and doing well in this universe.

"Moony Jr. wonders what Prongs Jr. did to make an arse of himself in front of the lady," said a boy who sat down across from them, also grinning. The yellow and black of the badger adorned his robes. "And which pranks we're going to pull on the blond twit and his weasel this year."

This one froze Harry. How had he become Head Boy if he regularly pranked Malfoy and Ron? And was this Lupin's child if he addressed himself as Moony Jr.? Does this mean he had made his dad proud after all?It seemed that more questions about this universe were being piled atop each other by the minute.

Harry opened his mouth to respond to Moony Jr., but right as he did the loud squawks of owls interrupted him. "Mail," is what came out of his mouth instead, and he immediately looked up. Oh, how great it would be to receive his first piece of mail from his parents. It was always something he had envisioned when everybody else received mail from loved ones.

The usual routine of owls flying in and dropping the parcels to their various recipients ensued, and the chatter of the students grew even louder as they spoke to be heard over the owls. Catherine and Moony Jr. each received a little something from home, and Harry noticed that Luna did, too. Mail ended without Harry getting anything, and he felt a small pit of disappointment in his stomach. He quickly pushed it away though, figuring he had to get mail from his parents at some point.

He picked up his fork and went to resume his eating when there was suddenly a loud hoot from above. Harry looked up and saw several owls carrying what was unmistakably a broom, the weight distributed among them equally via strings. Harry's eyes widened as the owls carried the broom straight to him and dropped it on the table, right on his plate. He knew his mum had said she was going to get him a broom, but he didn't know it was going to be this quickly. Had Lily gone to Diagon Alley immediately after seeing him off?

The broom was covered in wrapping paper, which Harry reverently took off as Moony Jr. and Catherine fed and watered the tired owls. Harry just finished taking the wrapping paper off just when the owls took off, and his two friends leaned in to look at it closer.

"Wow," said Moony Jr., reaching out a hesitant hand to lightly touch the polished handle. "It...It's amazing."

Catherine, however, was looking at him with interest. "So you're going to try out for the Quidditch team then?" she asked, sounding a little surprised.

"Yeah," said Harry excitedly. He didn't know what make or model this broom was, it having never existed in the other universe, but the way it felt when he gripped the handle made him think it might even be a better broom than his firebolt!

Michael Corner edged toward Harry, his eyes fixed on the broom in awe. "Wh...what broom is that?" he said, unable to take his eyes off of the broom. "I mean, I know who made, considering who you are and all, but..."

_Who I am?_Harry thought, inspecting the broom. Up near the very top of the handle, right below where Harry would be gripping the broom, there was fancy script.

"Potter Platinum Thunderbolt," he read out loud. He had never heard of the 'Platinum' broom company. And to get the broom personalized so his last name was on it...well, he would really need to thank his parents.

"But the Thunderbolt's not supposed to be out for another five months!" said someone from the crowd now gathered around him.

"It's...It's amazing..." he heard another one say. He also heard whispers of 'Over 1500 galleons' and 'I wish I was in the Potter family.'

There suddenly came a snort from the crowd. Before the person had even spoke, Harry had identified the snorter.

"Malfoy," Catherine said darkly under her breath, beating Harry to the punch.

Malfoy came up to Harry and roughly mussed up his hair. "Ickle Potterkins here thinks that just because his father owns a broom manufacturing company means he can try out for the Quidditch team," he said as though this was amusing.

Broom manufacturing company? Harry looked closer at the broom. Now that he looked at the script, it seemed as though that really couldn't be a personalization; it was lined up to perfectly with the other words. Then that meant...

"And we all know that when he doesn't make it he's going to cry just like at the end of last year," Malfoy said, and the crowd started laughing.

_Cry?_

Catherine was looking at him sympathetically as he sat there confused, unsure as to why he was even letting Malfoy try to bully him.

Harry suddenly stood up and the crowd fell silent, surprised no doubt at the boldness he would never have displayed before this summer. Catherine and Moony Jr. also looked surprised, but he saw out of the corner of his eye that Luna was smiling airily at the scene before her.

"Do you have your broom, Malfoy?" Harry asked dangerously. It was about time he taught this ferret a lesson.

"What?" Malfoy said, caught off-guard. Then he let out a sound of contempt. "Of course I have my broom, idiot, I'm the Slytherin's captain."

"Seeker too, right?" Harry asked, grinning.

"Obviously," Malfoy said, sneering.

It was Harry's turn to spit that sound of contempt straight back into Malfoy's face. "Fine then," he said. "You. Me. Quidditch pitch. After class. We'll see who's crying in the end."

Malfoy turned a bit pale. The confidence Harry was exuding was overwhelming. "I...uh...how is this even a test of skill?" he said, regaining his composure a bit. "A five-year-old on that broom could probably beat me. If you want to face me you'll use a school broom."

Harry grinned. "I'll beat you no matter which broom I use."

Malfoy grinned back. It seemed that he was only afraid of the broom. Oh, what a nasty surprise he was in for. "Fine then. Just don't run crying to your little half-blood whore again when you lose," he said maliciously, throwing a glance at Catherine, who looked at him like he was an idiot. Clearly she wasn't fazed by such an insult.

But before anybody could react, Moony Jr. yelled, "Don't you dare call her a whore, you stupid ferret!"

He jumped over the table and tackled Malfoy down to the ground, pinning him down and landing one solid punch straight to the face before Harry pulled him off. He did his best to struggle out of Harry's grip, yelling, "Let go of me!"

Malfoy looked like he was about to cry as he stood up and wiped the blood from his bruised nose, dazed from the blow. Catherine, meanwhile, was still looking at Moony Jr., her cheeks a brilliant pink.

Harry merely sighed as he saw McGonagall walking the Great Hall towards them, a stern look on her face. "Malfoy, Lupin, Potter, with me," she said briskly, turning on heel, obviously expecting them to follow.

Harry finally let go of Moony Jr. and picked up his broom, then turned to follow. Catherine's hand suddenly closed around his wrist and he turned back to her. She shook her head and said, "You forgot these, silly," and pushed two sealed envelopes into his hand. "They were in the wrapping, silly."

"Thanks," Harry said quickly, turning them to see that they both had his name on the front, making his heart swell.

"Mr. Potter, come," McGonagall called, ending the moment as he hurried to catch up with them.

He heard Catherine call from behind him. "I'll bring your and Teddy's bags to Potions!"

"Thanks!" he called over his shoulder. So Teddy had been born a lot sooner in this universe. Did that mean Tonks had been born earlier, too?

Harry put these in his 'Alternate Universe Questions' list, a.k.a questions that would be answered at some point (hopefully), and continued following Teddy, Malfoy, and McGonagall in the direction of what was undoubtedly Professor Dumbledore's office. The air McGonagall was giving off made him think they were all in trouble, though how any of this was Harry's fault he didn't know. He kept following anyway and knew that no matter what, he would have Teddy's back. What would they do to him? He was Head Boy, after all.

"Milky Way," McGonagall said tersely, and the four of them stood on the stair as it spun up to the top, depositing them at the door to Dumbledore's office, which looked just how he remembered it.

The entire office looked identical to how Harry had last seen it, actually, down to the very smallest detail. It looked like Luna wasn't the only one who hadn't changed.

"Please, sit," Dumbledore said gravely as he gestured to three chairs in front of his desk, reminding Harry of the situation he was in.

The three of them sat with Harry in the middle, his attention fixed on the Headmaster. Harry glanced over and saw that Malfoy's eyes were wide with fear, locked on Dumbledore's face. The look he gave them made Harry's stomach churn. The look of disappointment was something only Dumbledore was capable of...well, maybe his mother was too, but quite frankly, he didn't want to find that out.

"It's the first day of school, you three," Dumbledore finally said, relieving a tiny bit of the tension. "Explain yourselves."

Teddy and Harry glanced at each other, their eyes averted from Malfoy. No matter how much this was his fault, they wouldn't give him the satisfaction of breaking first. No, they could finish this themselves, like men.

"It was Lupin and Potter's fault!" Malfoy suddenly said.

Maybe there were only three men in the room.

Harry looked over at him to find him close to tears. Either he was a very good actor or Dumbledore genuinely scared him; Harry couldn't tell. "They just jumped on me and began hitting me all of the sudden!"

Harry snorted so only Malfoy and Teddy could hear him. He didn't really care that Malfoy had falsely accused him of something after all, it was _Dumbledore_they were sitting in front of.

"Oh?" said Dumbledore, frowning and leaning forward. "How does twenty points from Slytherin sound for lying to me?" he said. "I don't appreciate it when my students lie to me."

Malfoy swallowed hard. "Er...I..."

"Mr. Lupin," said Dumbledore suddenly. "Why don't you tell us what happened?"

Teddy cleared his throat. "Sir, Malfoy said something that made me angry, and I lost control of my temper and hit him square in the face," he said without hesitation, though his eyes looked straight ahead somewhere five feet to Dumbledore's right.

Dumbledore reclined in his chair. "And what, Mr. Potter, did Mr. Malfoy say?" he asked with interest.

Harry hesitated here. No matter who it was, he didn't want to win this by tattling on somebody. He was seventeen, not seven. He knew, though, that anything was better than disappointing Dumbledore. And doing something like this seemed like something the other Harry would do.

"Malfoy er...called Catherine a...erm..." Harry stuttered. Saying it out loud was a little harder than he expected.

"Catherine?" Teddy muttered, giving him an odd look.

"Catherine Black?" Harry said, afraid he had misunderstood Luna.

"Since when have you called her Catherine?" Teddy asked, further confusing Harry. He just couldn't get anything right in this universe.

Dumbledore cleared his throat. "Malfoy called Ms. Black an inappropriate name, then?" he clarified.

Harry nodded stiffly.

"No!" Malfoy said. "I didn't! I-"

"Another twenty points, Mr. Malfoy," said Dumbledore softly, his eyes hard. Malfoy closed his mouth and looked down at the ground angrily. "And I'll take off twenty more from Slytherin for provoking Mr. Lupin."

"But Malfoy went to interject.

"Now off to class, Mr. Malfoy," said Dumbledore. "Be glad you didn't receive a detention."

Malfoy silently fumed as he exited the classroom, leaving Harry and Teddy alone with Dumbledore. The headmaster turned to Teddy, gave him a sad look, and said, "I didn't expect this from you, Teddy."

Teddy was red from a mixture of embarrassment and shame. "He called Cat a-"

"I am well aware what Mr. Malfoy called Ms. Black," said Dumbledore quietly. "Nothing ever gives you the right to physically strike another person." Teddy looked about ready to cry and smash everything in the room at the same time. "I hope you know that."

When Teddy spoke, his voice came out as a hoarse whisper. "Yes sir."

"I'll be taking fifty points from Gryffindor and you'll be serving detention with your Head of House for three weeks," Dumbledore continued. He waited to see if Teddy would respond in any way, but he proved to be more intelligent than Malfoy. Finally, after what seemed to have been an eternity, Dumbledore said, "Off to class."

They both stood up, Harry figuring he had only been called to the office to share his view of how things happened, but Dumbledore said, "Mr. Potter, please stay."

Teddy stopped and looked back at Harry, who shook his head and motioned for him to continue. Teddy shrugged and turned back around to exit the office, hands in pockets and head hung low. Seems Harry wasn't the only one affected by a disappointed Dumbledore.

"How is everything going, Harry?" Dumbledore asked, snapping Harry out of his thoughts. Teddy had already left the room.

"It's all a little overwhelming, sir," Harry admitted. "And...well...Hogwarts doesn't really hold all the glamour it used to."

"Oh?" said Dumbledore, interested in his take on things.

Harry took a deep breath. "It has nothing to do with how you're running the school," said Harry.

"Is it because of a lack of Ms. Granger, perhaps?" Dumbledore asked, displaying that ever-present shrewdness.

Harry nodded slowly, wondering what the simmering feeling in the pit of his stomach was. All he knew was that it seemed to intensify whenever he thought of her.

"Harry," said Dumbledore slowly, reclining in his chair and looking up at the ceiling as though there was something of great interest stuck to it. "I want to tell you something."

"Yes sir?" Harry said, leaning forward in his seat a little in anticipation.

Dumbledore looked back down at him and said, "There are some things in life that are far more important than books and cleverness. Friendship, bravery...love..."

These words reverberated in Harry's head, echoing the words spoken by Hermione down in the room of potions when they were still in their first year.

"It's up to you to decide which path to take and what you want to follow and strive for in life," he said. When it became apparent to Dumbledore that Harry didn't exactly grasp the point of what he was trying to say, he said, "Discover what _you _want, Harry. Discover it and make sure you do whatever it takes to go after it."

Harry blinked, taken aback. What _did_he want? He honestly had no idea. The pit in his stomach and heart definitely had an idea, but surely those weren't things to base the choices of one's life off of.

"Think about it, Harry," said Dumbledore at the same instant Harry thought of it himself. "Think about it long and hard, and when you're ready I'm sure your friends and family will be there to support you to the end. And if they're not...well, they will be eventually. Remember to keep your spirits up, Harry, and remember that sometimes, to achieve happiness in life, you have to risk a little happiness." He looked at Harry pointedly for several seconds, then said, "Now, off to class. I'm sure you wouldn't want to miss your first day of potions, now would you?"

He smiled at Harry and waved him out of his office, his deep, thoughtful demeanor completely replaced by a doddering, happy old man. Harry walked slowly through the hallways as he digested Dumbledore's words, which were spinning in his head. There were so many things at once. Desires, risks, happiness, love...what did these all mean to him?

Harry sighed and ran a hand through his hair in agitation. "Thank you, Dumbledore, for giving me even more to think about. As if I need it right now," he grumbled.

As he returned his hands to his pockets, he felt the paper of the envelopes given to him by Catherine. His thoughts about Dumbledore, Dumbledore's hidden meanings, and Hermione quickly vanished from his mind to be replaced by eagerness to open the letters that came with the broomstick, which was still clutched firmly in his hands. His first gift from his parents...

He pulled the letters out of his pockets and opened the one that seemed to be from his mother first, based on the handwriting.

_Harry,_

_I'm so happy you're finally going out for the Quidditch team! It's been killing me to watch you want to play so badly but be unable to muck up the courage to go out there and go for it! I'll be rooting for you!_

_Oh, and keep Teddy in line, Head Boy. He's too impulsive for his own good (We love him for it all the same, but still...a little control could benefit him greatly)._

_See you for Christmas!_

_Love,_  
_Lily_

Harry smiled down at the letter, which he made sure to gently hold in his hands. The first letter he had ever received from his parents; what a wonderful feeling. And his mother worried about him...he loved it!

Wanting to get his father's take on things, he opened the other letter.

_Harry,_

_Go out there and show them what you're made of! The broom is the prototype for the Thunderbolt, which means you're the only one out there who's going to have the fastest broom in the world (and the most expensive...)._

_You don't really need the broom to make the team (we all know Corner is a complete git and a scrub), but I figured you would enjoy it._

_Keep rocking on with Teddy and Cat and show Malfoy who the _real_ crybaby is._

_See you at Christmas, though don't be surprised if me and your mum show up to the Quidditch matches._

_James_

_P.S. I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good. Use the map to take Malfoy down a notch. Also, a tub of bubotuber pus never hurts._

Harry chuckled to himself as he wiped the tears out of his eyes, emotion threatening to overwhelm him. This was just how he imagined James would write a letter to him. Humor but a very real presence of pride and seriousness.

They both seemed genuinely excited about Harry trying out for the Quidditch team, so he promised himself that he would make the team and make them proud. He knew he could do it, after all he had been the youngest player to make a team in a century, and he knew he would make his parents proud.

It was time to show Hogwarts, Lily, and James what this new Harry was made of.

**A/N: Welp, the second chapter is just a little more acclimatizing to the new universe, but the story will begin to pick up a little more in the next two chapters.**  
**  
Until then!**


	3. Struggle

**A/N: Love the reviews! Keep them up! I hit a little snag in my writing, and it shouldn't take this long to update again; I promise!**

**Chapter 3 - Struggle**

Harry sat through class that day idly, taking some notes here and there, but mostly staring boredly out of the window. His thoughts kept straying to Hermione, and how she would have fared in this new universe. Would they have become friends? After all, Harry and Ron hadn't exactly been friendly to her until the troll incident, which certainly would have never happened in this universe.

Well, at the very least she would certainly be interested as to how Snape ended up the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.

Harry's thoughts strayed less to Hermione and his energy did rise as the end of class approached and the fated quidditch match with Malfoy drew nearer. Maybe then he could destroy the reputation the other Harry held. Plus, quidditch sounded like the perfect activity to take his mind off of everything, even if it was only for several minutes. Maybe everything would become clearer and he could sort out these weird feelings he had about Hermione.

His chest seemed to tighten whenever he thought about her. Whenever he realized she wouldn't be there to hang around in the common room, he would get a little depressed. He would also get depressed when he realized she wouldn't be there to consult with about his concerns. He got the most depressed, though, when he realized he wouldn't be able to hear her smile or laugh anytime soon. The only thing he could even be remotely happy about was that she didn't have to deal with his dangerous life in this universe like she did in the last.

What was wrong with him? He felt a little...well, a little less than he did yesterday, as if he was being very slowly undone. It was as though he couldn't live without Hermione...she was a craving he couldn't satiate. He had never felt this in the other universe...but then again, he had never really been without Hermione recently in the other universe. But when they were younger and they had spent a summer apart he had never had this feeling; what did it mean? Was it a side-effect from his dimensional travel?

"Mr. Potter?" Hagrid asked from his podium at the front of his care for magical creatures class. He had never known Hagrid to hold indoor classes. But then again, he had never known Hagrid to be so intelligent...or buff. He was practically bursting out of his shirt and looked as though he could lift a dump truck.

Hearing his name called snapped Harry out of his thoughts, and he quickly sat up at attention, his cheeks turning a bit red when he saw the entire class looking at him. "Yes, sir?" he said.

Hagrid raised an eyebrow at him, then said, "I asked you what the habitat, diet, and feeding behavior the acromantula exhibits."

Harry blinked once, then silently thanked his luck before saying, "Well, the acromantula-"

The bell rang over Harry's answer and he frowned, revoking the thanks he had given to lady luck. Finally, right when he could answer something properly, he had the opportunity snatched from him.

He sighed and packed up his stuff, but when he went to leave, Hagrid called him back into the classroom. "Harry, could I speak to you for a moment, please?"

Harry stopped and turned around, and when everybody else had left the classroom, he walked back up to Hagrid's desk and said, "Yes, sir?"

"Yes, sir?"

Hagrid gave him a deep, penetrating look that reminded Harry a lot of Dumbledore. "You doing alright?" he asked. "You looked like you were thinking about something pretty serious there."

Harry blinked, surprised by the insightfulness Hagrid was exhibiting. Then, when he really registered what had been asked, he realized he would have to come up with a legitimate excuse. "I erm…well…you know…have a lot of…stuff…on my mind," he stuttered, cursing himself for his inability to think on his toes; though, when he really thought about it, that had been the truth.

Hagrid narrowed his eyes a bit, making Harry squirm, then leaned back in his chair, apparently satisfied. Or so Harry thought. "Is it girl troubles?" he suddenly asked.

Harry made a strangled choking sound, shocked at Hagrid's keenness. "No sir," he lied automatically. Whatever happened, he would never take advice about women from Hagrid…he had seen what had happened with Madam Maxime, after all.

Hagrid raised a skeptical eyebrow. "Harry," he said as if he knew better (which he did, of course).

Harry debated a second over whether he should continue lying, then let out a long sigh when he came to the realization that he couldn't fool this universe's Hagrid. "Fine," he admitted grudgingly. "It's 'girl troubles.'"

Hagrid looked at him with interest. "If you don't mind me asking, what sort of girl troubles are you having, Harry?"

Harry sighed and allowed his frustration to spill out. "I don't even know, Hagrid. I don't even know where to start."

Hagrid chuckled. "I'll get you started, Harry," he said, bemused. "Professor Dumbledore told me about your situation." Harry was shocked, but only for a second. He knew Hagrid would believe whatever Dumbledore told him whether he seemed to be much more well-versed in the way he spoke or not. "Do your girl troubles revolve around this Miss Granger you were speaking of?"

"Yes," Harry said, and before he knew it the words were tumbling out. "I don't know what's happening, Hagrid. I mean, it's been about two days since I've last seen her, but it seems like it's been a lifetime. I already miss her, and the prospect of going to school everyday and not being able to see her...well, it makes my chest hurt," he admitted while rubbing his chest absentmindedly. "I don't know, Hagrid...I never felt this way before." He had explained a lot to Hagrid, but didn't know how to explain it completely. He couldn't find the proper words. "As cheesy as it sounds, it feels as though everything I do doesn't have any meaning."

A knowing grin spread on Hagrid's face. "I'll tell you what you should do, Harry," he said.

"And what's that?" Harry asked, interested in what one of the people he trusted most had to say about Hermione.

Hagrid simply said, "You have to find her."

Harry sighed. He had been expecting more. "I know that, Hagrid. My main problem is that I don't know if I'm going to make it through the school year without her."

"Then don't," came Hagrid's quick reply.

Harry voiced his first thought. "What?"

Hagrid leaned forward in his chair, a gleam in his eyes. "If you truly care for this girl as much as you claim to, then don't even wait until Christmas Break," he said. "Go as soon as you can. Find her. Tell her how you feel."

Harry's jaw dropped open from shock. "Hagrid!" he said. "You're a professor telling me to run away from school?"

Hagrid gave him a thoughtful look. "From what Dumbledore relayed to me concerning the other universe, it sounds like you have little left to learn here at Hogwarts. I'm sure Dumbledore would agree with me when I say that there are aspects of life that are more important than school."

Harry was still looking at Hagrid as though he was crazy. "But what about my parents? I want to make a good impression on them."

Hagrid waved his hand in front of his face dismissively. "Harry, they've known you for seventeen years. You're a good kid...adult. Go out there and live life. Every teenager does something crazy at some point anyway. You'd be abnormal to not run out on school."

Harry laughed disbelievingly. This whole suggestion was completely insane. "Do all of this just to see a friend?" he asked as if it was the world's funniest joke.

Hagrid paused, confusion in his eyes for the merest of seconds before he said, "Harry, go see her and you'll see what I mean."

"What are you talking about?" Harry said.

Hagrid's eyes locked onto his, completely serious. "Find her, Harry. Do what it takes. You'll see why eventually."

Harry opened his mouth to further question his mentor, but Hagrid quickly said, "You are dismissed, Harry." Harry blinked. "Out. Go. And I better not see you in here again anytime soon."

Harry was offended until he saw Hagrid wink and the large smile hidden by his beard. Instead of continuing to argue, he picked up his belongings and left the classroom, shaking his head as he closed the door behind him.

What kind of nonsensical advice was that? Ditch his seventh year - his N.E.W.T. year - at school to find one of his friends who would most likely be in the same spot several months from now?

Completely insane.

First off, assuming Harry actually followed Hagrid's hairbrained advice and skipped school, he didn't even know where to locate Hermione. She had never told him anything about where she lived. Heck, Harry didn't even know which part of England Hermione lived in!

Second off, what kind of example would he be setting as Head Boy? He would be setting the standard that it would be okay to ditch school for several weeks or months to hang out with a friend, which definitely wasn't right. It wasn't fair to the other students to do something like this.

"Thinking of leaving without me?" a voice asked from behind him.

"Catherine," he said when he saw it she who had spoke.

"So that was the reason all along, was it?" Catherine said. "I thought something was fishy when you addressed me by my first name. You know I prefer going by Cat...or do you?"

Harry's stomach clenched and he opened and closed his mouth like a fish out of water. "I...uh...well...you know..."

"Be quiet," Catherine said, then walked up to him with her hands on her hips. She inspected every inch of his face very closely, then when it seemed that she was satisfied, she said, "You look just like Harry. Who are you and what are you doing masquerading as Harry? Hagrid said something about a parallel universe, but I don't believe in anything like that."

Harry sighed. The jig was up. It seemed that no matter which universe it was, neither he nor Hagrid could manage to keep a secret. "Doesn't matter what you believe, Catherine-"

"Cat," she interjected, her arms crossed in front of her.

Harry rubbed his forehead, everything that was happening making him tired. "Alright," he said. "It doesn't matter what you believe, C-Cat," he repeated, stumbling over the personal name a bit. "It's true." Her eyes told him she wasn't believing him. "Look, I'm Harry, I really am. I'm just not your Harry. I'm Harry from a different universe."

Cat narrowed her eyes at him. "If you're really Harry, then what's your favorite dessert? Surely that's the same no matter which universe you're from."

Harry grinned at her. "That one's easy," he said. "Pumpkin pie, of course."

Catherine froze, her eyes widening a bit as they stayed locked on his. Her shocked look turned into a wary look in the blink of an eye, looking like she was about to be attacked. "You're really Harry?" she asked suspiciously.

"Look, Cat, I can provide whatever type of evidence you need," Harry said, beginning to get frustrated.

Cat studied him for a long moment, a range of emotions passing through her eyes before she finally sighed in defeat. "Fine," she said grudgingly. "I believe you. With the way you've been acting, it's really the only thing that makes sense."

Harry smiled and said, "Thank you."

"What happened to our Harry?" she asked suddenly, a disturbed look on her face.

That one made Harry hesitate, too. "I...I don't know," he replied honestly. "I might have switched places with him or I might have overwritten him completely. In all honesty, I hope he didn't get sent to the universe I lived in." He looked down at the ground. "It was terrible."

He looked up when Cat put a hand on his shoulder comfortingly. Conviction burned in her eyes as she said, "I'm sure that wherever he was sent, he can adapt and make the best of it."

Harry gave her a weak smile in return. "I sincerely hope so."

Cat smiled at him, and there was a comfortable moment of silence between the two. It was finally broken when Cat asked, "So...why are you leaving Hogwarts?"

Harry looked at her oddly. "Did you eavesdrop on my conversation with Hagrid?"

Catherine's cheeks grew red. "I was worried about you."

Despite her eavesdropping, Harry felt a smile tug at the corners of his mouth. It felt good to have people worry about him. "Everything's fine with me," he said. "And I don't think I'm leaving Hogwarts...not quite yet, at least."

Catherine folded her arms in front of her chest again. "Harry," she said very seriously. "You need to leave Hogwarts and go find this girl."

"You too?" Harry said in disbelief.

Cat grinned at him. "Trust Hagrid and trust me. I think he was right when he said there are things more important in life than school."

Harry sighed. "Look, Cat," he started. "I can't just up and leave school to find a friend. I have to receive a good education to land a good job."

Cat stared at him like he was an idiot, then started laughing. She laughed so hard, in fact, that there were tears in her eyes by the time she was finished. "Harry," she said between laughs. "Your father owns the most successful broom company in the world; a broom company, I might add, that you're slated to inherit. In terms of your schooling, I'm sure that if you asked Dumbledore if you could take the N.E.W.T.s right now, he would allow you to and pass you in every single subject."

Harry hesitated, then whispered, "Erm, Cat...I don't think I'm as smart as this universe's Harry."

It was her turn to give him an odd look. "No," she said confidently. "I'm pretty sure you are."

Harry sighed. "I was a Gryffindor, Cat."

Catherine laughed and said, "Well, that certainly would have made things more fun around here." Then, adopting a more serious tone, she said, "I don't think it matters that you were a Gryffindor, Harry. I think what matters is what you value most in yourself, and while in this universe you valued your intelligence, in the other universe it didn't matter as much to you. You two are the same person, Harry. The only thing different is the level of confidence the two of you had, and even that isn't terribly different."

Harry took a deep breath and slowly let it out. All of this thinking and decision-making made his head hurt. Even if there was no Voldemort in this universe, there were still a lot of things out there to make life stressful.

"Here's what I'm going to do, Cat," he said. "I'm going to go down to the Quidditch pitch and kick Malfoy's butt. That is the only absolute in my life right now. When I come to a decision, I'll let you know."

Catherine seemed pleased enough with this answer. "Just promise me that if you decide to go, I can come along with you."

Harry smiled wryly. "Haha Cat, very funny," he said sarcastically.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "I wasn't joking," she said with such honesty that it made Harry stop in his tracks.

He turned back around to face her and said, "I'm already forsaking my own education. I'm not allowing you to skip out on yours."

Cat scoffed. "Who made you my parent?" she said indignantly. "I'm an adult now, and I'm going to make my own decisions. I'm coming with you whether you like it or not." She smiled cheekily at him. "And I want to meet the girl you hold in such high regard.

Harry opened his mouth to say something, took one look at the determination that was burning in her eyes, and gave up. He sighed and said, "Do whatever you want, Cat. I'm in no way responsible for you skipping out, though."

"What kind of person do you think I am?" she asked, grinning at him cheekily. "You can handle your parents and I'll handle mine." Then her smile turned weak. "Oh, and...uh...Teddy can handle his," she mumbled.

"What?!" Harry said. "How many people did you bring in on this, Cat?"

"Just me!" said a new voice, which came from Teddy as he stepped around a corner. "It's going to be just another adventure for the Marauders!" he said excitedly.

"I haven't even made a decision yet," Harry said frustratedly. Then he added, "And I bet you're just doing this so you can get out of detention, aren't you?"

"Harry, Harry, Harry," Teddy said, walking up and grabbing his shoulder. "Of course that's not part of the reason...but it is a pretty nice perk, isn't it?"

Harry grinned at Teddy as he realized that these two people right here, the children of his parents' friends, were his best friends. They seemed to be really close to him and definitely cared for him, and he already felt as though he could depend on them for any support he needed (even if they did eavesdrop from time to time). It felt good to have them at his side despite most of the students of the school treating him like dirt.

He couldn't wait to get to know them better.

"Just another adventure for the Marauders," he confirmed, smiling when his two friends did the same.

"Well now that that's settled, what are we waiting for?" Teddy said excitedly. "We have to get you to the Quidditch pitch so you can give Malfoy what he deserves!"

Harry nodded determinedly and began walking through the castle in the direction of the pitch, the anticipation building in his gut making him feel at home for the first time since arriving in this universe. Even if Hermione wasn't there at the moment, at least Quidditch was and could provide him with a temporary escape into the familiar.

Harry fell behind the other two a little as he looked around the castle and reminisced about all the good times he had had in these halls. Was he really ready to leave them? Was he really ready to change a constant in his life?

He sighed and looked back ahead, deciding those were questions he could wrestle with that night, when he was lying comfortably in bed.

He focused instead on his two best friends, who were talking animatedly with each other, laughter and happiness making their eyes light up. Harry swore he saw Teddy's hand make a few motions in the direction of Catherine's hand, as if he meant to grab it, but he always chickened out. Harry found a grin forming on his face at the obvious attraction Teddy held toward their mutual friend.

The sun was bright, forcing Harry to shade his eyes as he made his way to the quidditch pitch with his two friends. Malfoy was standing at the ready, two brooms in hand, with quite a few students talking and milling around him.

He had a nasty smirk on his face as Harry approached. "I thought the crybaby was going to realize what a loser he was and not show up."

All Harry did in return was chuckle and say, "Hearing the same stupid insults come out of your mouth over and over again makes me glad I'm intelligent, Malfoy."

Malfoy turned a bit red and stuttered, "W-whatever, Potter. We going to do this or what?"

Harry pretended to consider it. "Well, I'm going to catch the snitch, if that's what you meant by 'or what.'"

Malfoy's face returned to its normal sneer. "You think you're so special just because your father owns a broom company." He threw Harry one of the brooms he was holding and smirked at him. Harry could tell just by holding the old lump of wood and several measly bristles that this was the worst broom Hogwarts owned...not that he had been expecting anything different, of course. "Just wait until I'm through with you."

Harry scratched his chin, unfazed. "Funny," he said nonchalantly."Your mother said the same thing last night."

The gathered crowd began laughing, turning Malfoy's face a deep red, and he angrily said, "Oh, you're going to get it, Potter."

Harry sneered back at him. "Bring it, Malfoy."

Malfoy mounted his broom as the crowd began to cheer, and Harry did the same. Harry had to resist the urge to sigh when he felt the broom begin to vibrate in his grip. Was this thing even going to fly?

Harry shook his head and muttered, "Here goes nothing."

He kicked off at the same time as Malfoy, who went rocketing off ahead of Harry as his broom threatened to send him crashing back into the ground. He managed to bring it back up, though, and fought the broom from pulling him to the left, which it seemed intent on doing.

Harry had to suddenly barrel roll on his broom when Malfoy tried to knock him off, and jeers went up from the crowd. Harry grit his teeth and worked on getting the hang of his broom, his focus slipping when a bunch of cheers went up from the crowd.  
Apparently the snitch had been released before he arrived. Malfoy hadn't been trying to knock him off of his broom; he had been going after the snitch.

Harry wrestled his broom in the correct direction and mumbled encouraging words to it as he couldn't help but think to himself, Of course I'm in a situation like this when I haven't played in almost two years.

He continued to encourage his broom though; why, he didn't know, yet he did it all the same. He tried to kid himself into thinking it was having any effect and continued pushing it to the limit, sighing as he fell farther and farther behind.

Just when he had given up, the snitch took a generous turn in his favor and he darted forward, now neck and neck with Malfoy, who was surprised Harry could actually fly on the broom he had been given.

Both of them were closing in on the snitch, arms outstretched, though Malfoy's was a little in front and edging further. Right when he was about to close his hand around the snitch, Harry said, "Is this broom you and Weasley use in your alone time, Malfoy?"

Harry didn't even know what he meant by that but it was the first thing that came to mind, and it served its purpose. Malfoy looked over at him in surprise and fumbled the snitch, and Harry took the opportunity to snatch the tiny winged ball.

He held it up in the air as the crowd stared on, shocked, Malfoy staring at him in disbelief and anger.

He alighted on the ground next to Catherine and Teddy, grins on their faces.

"Looks like all that summer Quidditch paid off, eh Harry?" Teddy said, leading them back in the direction of the castle. Harry didn't have any qualms about this; he had done what he needed to do.

"Nice catch there, Harry," Cat said, her grin turning into a smile.

Harry chuckled. "You guys doubted me, didn't you?"

They both fell silent, then Cat muttered, "Maybe just a little."

"Hey, Potter," came a voice from behind them, making them stop and turn around. It was Malfoy, and he looked to be on the verge of tears as the gathered crowd looked at him as though he was a leper. "You better watch your back, you hear?"

Harry laughed out loud and held the snitch in front of him for everyone to see. "Why should I watch my back, Malfoy? You're going to be watching it get farther and farther away from you for the rest of your life."

Malfoy opened and closed his mouth a few times before storming off, and the rest of the crowd looked at Harry with interest before they began breaking up and heading back to the castle.

Harry turned around and walked back up to the castle with Catherine and Teddy at his sides.

After a few seconds of an amiable silence, Cat said, "That was pretty amazing though, Harry. That broom looks like it's a hundred years old."

Harry chuckled. "It handled like it was a hundred years old," he said.

"Where did you learn to fly like that, Harry?" Teddy suddenly asked. "I mean, the old Harry was a good flier, but he wasn't that good."

Harry grinned at Teddy. "I made the Gryffindor team in first year. I guess I was just born to be good at Quidditch."

"Pompous git," Teddy replied lightheartedly.

They had just entered the castle, and all three stopped as they realized they were heading in different directions - Harry to the Heads' common room and Catherine and Teddy to the Gryffindor common room.

Catherine smiled at him and said, "I guess we'll see you at dinner, Harry. Should be coming around in about two and a half hours anyway."

"Sounds good," he said, taking a couple steps toward the hallway he was going to head down.

"Oh, and don't forget to come to a decision about...that," Teddy added before he and Cat disappeared down a hallway.

Harry sighed. As if it was possible to forget about that.

He looked at the snitch, which was lying peacefully in his hand, as he began walking back to his common room. Even though he had been flying and had caught the snitch, he hadn't felt completely at home on the broom.

A normal flier might have pegged it down to the broom being terrible, but Harry knew what it really was: Hermione. Beating Malfoy didn't bring him any sense of satisfaction. It didn't bring him the feelings and emotion he knew Hermione would, and it didn't make him smile as much as he knew seeing his best friend again would.

Harry stopped in his tracks halfway down a hallway.

It was time to make a decision. He had all the knowledge he needed at this point, especially after that Quidditch fight with Malfoy.

After deciding, he looked up at the snitch again, tightened his fist around it, and set off for Dumbledore's office with determination burning in his eyes.

* * *

Albus Dumbledore sat in his office, waiting patiently for a student he knew would be coming in at any second. He really did know the students better than they thought he did, though that probably had to do with the amount of time he had spent as an instructor and the headmaster.

A knock sounded at the door and Dumbledore smiled lightly and said, "Come in."

He knew who it was going to be, thus wasn't surprised to see Harry Potter walk into his office. He also knew exactly what Harry was going to do, so he held out his hand in anticipation.

Harry placed his Head Boy badge in the headmaster's hand without hesitation. "Professor Dumbledore..." he began.

"Harry," Dumbledore said as he placed the badge in one of his desk drawers. "I just want you to know that I'm proud of you." Harry opened his mouth to speak, but Dumbledore beat him to it. "I will send a letter to your parents to let them know that I've selected you to do hands-on studying in the muggle world for class. You can tell them the truth whenever you wish; I'm merely doing this for you because you're making the correct decision. There are things in life that I can't teach you - that nobody can teach you - and you can learn far more by going out there and living life rather than relearning things you learned in the other universe."

Dumbledore smiled at the appreciative look on Harry's face. "Thank you, sir," he said.

He hesitated, and Dumbledore took this opportunity to speak again. "While I do not agree with Ms. Black and Mr. Lupin leaving this school to go along with you, I will write a similar letter to their parents and allow you all to work it out as need be. All three of you are exceptional students and are welcome to come back and take your N.E.W.T.s any time."

Dumbledore held out his hand, and Harry hesitated for only a second before taking and shaking it. "Thank you very much, Professor Dumbledore."

"Off you go, Harry," he said, shooing him out the door.

He watched his former Head Boy walk out of the classroom before reclining in his chair, a small smile on his face.

He sighed happily and mused to himself, "I can still give some pretty good speeches, can't I?"

**A/N: Whew, finally got it done! Yay! Now I can get to the good parts with Hermione!**

**Thank you very much for reading and please don't forget to leave me a review! Your feedback is greatly appreciated and considered when writing the next chapter!**


	4. Somewhere Only We Know

**Chapter 4 - Somewhere Only We Know**

"Took you long enough!" Catherine said impatiently, arms crossed in front of her. "I thought you would have decided even sooner!"

Harry had just shown up at Gryffindor tower to inform his two friends of his decision. They were already standing in front of the portrait of the fat lady with their luggage at their feet.

"Erm..sorry," said Harry sheepishly. "I had a little talk with Dumbledore first."

Catherine opened her mouth to say something else, but Teddy quickly interjected, "Well, we're glad you made the right choice, Harry."

Catherine nodded minutely, though she did throw small glare at Teddy for cutting her off. Instead of saying what she had intended on saying earlier, she asked, "So, how are we getting to wherever we're going?"

"Well, do both of you know how to fly?" Harry asked, his first reaction and choice, of course, being broomsticks.

Teddy cringed. "I don't want to have to ride a broom for very long, especially during the night."

Catherine's face brightened up. "Well, I could always side-along apparate you two."

Harry and Teddy both turned to stare at Catherine. "Why didn't you just lead with that?" Teddy asked, voicing Harry's question.

Catherine blushed. "I...er...I forgot," she admitted. Then she shook her head and looked up unashamed. "Well, we need to shrink our luggage first if we're going to do that."

Teddy and Catherine both shrunk their luggage to a manageable size and put their stuff in their pockets, and Harry patted his to make sure it was all still where he had stowed his away.

Catherine then said, "Secondly, we need to know where we're going." She and Teddy turned to look at Harry with interest.

This one really stumped Harry, and he froze. He hadn't thought of that. "I...erm...I have no idea where we're going," he admitted.

Teddy frowned, his eyebrows drawing together. "You mean you don't even know where she lives?" he asked, surprised. Harry shook his head. "Not even the city?" Teddy continued.

Harry coughed nervously. "Er...London?" he ventured.

Both Catherine and Teddy were looking at him like he was a lost cause. Catherine took a long, deep breath and let it out slowly, then said, "Well, we could always try London. Where should we stay at?"

Harry's hand automatically went to the back pocket of his jeans, where he had kept quite a large amount of gold during the war with Voldemort in case he needed it for anything at the spur of the moment. He was glad he had it, especially when he didn't know if his parents would support him doing this kind of thing. He definitely needed the money.

Harry cleared his throat and said, "Well, since we don't know where Hermione is, we should probably go to a hotel or something."

Teddy frowned, going into thought, and after a second his face brightened. "Hey, how about the Leaky Cauldron?"

Harry nodded, impressed. "That sounds good to me," he said, then turned to Catherine. "How about you?"

Catherine shrugged. "I already talked to my dad over the mirrors. He said we could stay with him if we wanted to."

Harry felt his eye twitch, and once again Teddy voiced his question. "Why do you keep letting us discuss all these things if you already have a reasonable solution?"

Catherine shrugged, and Harry could see she was trying to hide a grin. "I don't know," she said innocently. "Because it's fun?" She finally allowed Teddy to see her grin.

Teddy snorted. "You're lucky, Catherine," he said. "Out of the three of us, I'm pretty sure the only parents that would be cool with us not only staying at their house, but leaving school, would be yours."

Cat's grin became even more cheeky. "I know," she said teasingly. "And you pretty much just admitted my parents are cooler than yours."

Teddy blanched, then grinned and shrugged in agreement. "Yeah, Sirius is pretty cool."

There was a brief moment of silence, then Harry said, "Well, shall we get going then?"

Catherine nodded and Teddy said, "Can't wait to get out of this place!"

Then Catherine grabbed each of them with one arm and Harry said, "Wait, what about the apparation wards around the castle?"

Catherine drew in her brows as she looked at him in confusion. "Well...I think that there must have been apparation wards around your universe's Hogwarts because of the threat of an outside attacker. No such wards exist around this castle."

Before Harry could even acknowledge her logic, Catherine turned on the spot and Harry felt the normal apparation sensation of being sucked through a tube. He squeezed his eyes shut, and right when he was reaching the point that he knew he would have to take a breath, the sensation stopped.

Once it felt as though the ground had stopped spinning beneath his feet, he finally opened his eyes and was met with the sight of a house. Harry had been expecting number 12, Grimmauld Place for some reason, and this was completely different. It was a simple two-story house with a moderate front yard that contained a blossoming apple tree, and the grass was perfectly mowed.

Harry imagined the place looked even better in the daytime, and couldn't wait to see it the next day. But even more than that, he couldn't wait to see...

"Sirius!" Harry said excitedly, glad to see his godfather alive and well. Yet another reason to love this new universe.

"Harry!" Sirius said. "Catherine! Teddy!"

He tightly embraced his daughter before holding her back at arms' length, a stern look on his face. "I'm very disappointed that you left school early...is what your mother wants me to say," Sirius said lightheartedly. "It's good to see you three again!"

"Dad," Catherine said, embarrassed. "It's only been a week."

"Regardless of that fact, I'm happy to see you," said Sirius. "Your mother, on the other hand," he added quietly, giving her a look that Harry knew meant they were in for it. Surely this couldn't be as bad as a Mrs. Weasley outburst, could it? If so, Harry wanted to go back to Hogwarts right now. Sirius sighed. "Let's just say she's waiting for you in the sitting room."

Catherine stiffened, then turned to her friends and sighed. "Well, let's go in then, guys."

Harry entered the Black residence with trepidation, making sure to stay behind the other two to make sure he wasn't taking the brunt of the fury they were about to be facing. Teddy through a worried glance back at him and he shrugged. Teddy shrugged back and scooted a bit closer to Catherine.

Harry couldn't help but appreciate the homey and welcoming atmosphere of Sirius's home. Everything was lit well and there was faint music playing in the background. When the four arrived in the sitting room, it became apparent that the music was coming from the record player sitting on one of the two tables in the room. There were two lounge chairs and a sofa, one of the chairs occupied by a beautiful blonde woman.

She looked to be a couple years younger than Sirius and had smile crinkles at the corners of her eyes, and honestly looked like the nicest, most motherly person Harry could possibly think of. Harry had thought the same of Mrs. Weasley previously, but Mrs. Black took the cake. Harry shuddered at the thought of how bad this tirade was going to be.

But he knew that no matter how bad it got, this woman cared for all three of them, for there was a smile on her face as she stood up and embraced her daughter.

In fact, she didn't seem all too mad at all.

"Catherine, Teddy, Harry!" she said, embracing them all in turn. Her hug was full of love, just like Lily's. "I'm so excited that you're going to be staying here! Ever since you three grew up to be teenagers, I just haven't been able to see you as often! I already have cookies baking in the oven for you three. Did you apparate here?"

Teddy frowned, confused, and turned to Sirius, who was trying to suppress laughter. Harry then rolled his eyes as he realized he had been played by an original marauder, and started grinning. He relaxed a little, glad he would have a good first impression to go on concerning Sirius's wife.

"Hey Aunt Amelia," Teddy said. "Thanks for letting us stay!"

"Yeah, thank you," Harry said. "Now we don't have to stay in the Leaky Cauldron."

Amelia put her hands on her hips. "Oh, you know I wouldn't allow you three to stay by yourselves in a place like the Leaky Cauldron! Go on upstairs to the rooms; I'll bring the cookies up when they're done."

She shooed them up the stairs and Teddy led Harry to what he figured was a guest room that had two beds, no doubt Harry and Teddy had stayed there multiple times, and Catherine went into what Harry assumed was her own room.

A few minutes later, Catherine came into Teddy and Harry's room wearing muggle clothes instead of her robes and she said, "Well, now that that's over, we should probably discuss what we're going to do next."

They both looked at Harry expectantly, and he faltered again. "Well...I...I don't really know to be honest," he said. At the disappointed look in his friends' eyes, he continued by saying, "I'm more of a spur of the moment type of guy. Planning things and following that plan to the dot are definitely not my fortes."

Catherine scowled and Teddy grinned. "Harry, how do you ever get anything done without planning it ahead of time?" Catherine asked. "Taking everything second by second can only take you so far."

Harry blanched, then, seeing where this conversation was going, changed the subject. "Anyway, we shouldn't be arguing about that at the moment. What we should be doing is figuring out what we're going to do next collaboratively. You two said you would help me, and I think the greatest help you two can be at this moment is by helping me figure out what the next step is."

"He's right," Teddy said, backing Harry up. "For some reason Harry believed that Hermione may have come from London, though I think that was just an educated guess."

"Uneducated guess, actually," Harry mumbled.

Teddy and Catherine pretended not to hear even though they faltered for just a millisecond. "Well, London has a pretty large population," Catherine said. "If this were a small town, we could go door to door."

"There's always the phone book," Harry said.

"That's right!" Catherine exclaimed.

"Phone book?" Teddy said, confused, as if the words were foreign for him.

"It's...er...like a directory," Harry said. "It has everyone's names and phone numbers."

"The only problem is, of course, that not everybody is in the phone book," Catherine added.

The door opened at that second and Sirius and Amelia came in, Amelia with the cookies on a plate. The smell of them reminded Harry that he hadn't eaten since lunch. The plate was passed around and Harry wolfed a few down, and before any of them knew it, every single cookie had been eaten in silence.

Amelia told them to not stay up too late, bade them good night, and left the room, leaving the three teens with Sirius.

"Dad?" Catherine asked. "What are you-"

"Listen to me closely," Sirius interrupted in a low voice, throwing a furtive glance over his shoulder, no doubt to check if his wife eavesdropping. "I did some digging around at work and found something about your girl, Harry. Hermione Granger, eighteen years old, right?"

Harry nodded. "Dumbledore had sent me the name and I found out what I could in the muggle government's database. Turns out her parents own a house on 12447 Sycamore Lane, which is on the opposite side of London."

"Wow, Sirius," Harry said in awe. "Thank you so much for the help."

"I didn't help you," Sirius said, grinning as he threw another glance over his shoulder at the door. "You knew where she lived all along and suddenly remembered...remember?"

Harry grinned back before nodding. "Yeah, that's right," he said.

Sirius stood up right as Amelia came back to the door of the room, a confused look on her face. "You coming to bed?" she asked.

Sirius stretched and said, "Yep." As he began walking out of the room, he said, "Oh, and we'll leave some money for whatever you need tomorrow downstairs in the kitchen when Amelia and I leave for work tomorrow."

"Thank you," the three teens chorused right before Sirius's and Amelia's bedroom door closed.

The three of them looked each other in the eyes and, in unison, said, "Tomorrow, then?"

They laughed at saying it at the same time, then Catherine stood up and said, "I'll make sure to get you up bright and early then, okay boys? Good night!"

"Good night," Teddy and Harry said back, watching her leave the room.

Teddy and Harry then proceeded to get ready for bed themselves, and when they were finally lying down with the lights off, Teddy said, "How do you feel, Harry?"

Harry let the question stew for a second and let the words flow from his feelings. "I feel...kind of nervous, actually, and I don't know why."

"Oh?" Teddy said in return. "You don't know?"

Harry swallowed and licked his lips as he thought of how to respond. "I mean, she's just my best friend, isn't she? My best friend...who I can't seem to function properly without...and who I...who I miss more than I thought I ever would." He felt hot tears in his eyes as he remembered her lifeless body lying on the Hogwarts grounds. "I don't know, man," he said, his voice gravelly from his burning throat. "This...t-this isn't how I should be feeling about a friend, is it?"

He didn't know why he was unloading all of this on Teddy, but he did know that it felt incredibly good to be getting all of this off of his chest before he went to see Hermione tomorrow. It would probably be better to have all of his feelings sorted out now rather than when he was faced with her directly.

"Harry," Teddy said seriously. "I think you have to ask yourself one question: Where do you envision your relationship with her ten years from now? Do you want to be her best friend, and be there for her wedding as she gets married off to another man, or do you want to be the one by her side always?"

This one really caught Harry off guard. "Marriage?" he choked out. "Who said anything about marriage?"

"Harry, just think about it," Teddy said with such conviction that Harry couldn't help but do so.

Could he watch as Hermione became the sole attention of another man and he was pushed to the side?

Honestly, the thought alone sent shivers down Harry's spine and a spike of fear lancing through his heart.

And now came the hard part. He knew that when these next words came out of his mouth, there would be no turning back. "I...I think I love her, Teddy," he whispered, though the words seemed to echo around the room and settle on him with such weight that he knew them to be true. At the same time, they lifted a lot of pressure and confusion from him.

"Took you long enough," Teddy said, laughing. "Even before Cat knew of Hermione, she could see that you were in love!"

Harry felt his face heating up, and said, "Yeah, whatever." There was silence for several seconds before he added, "Thanks, Teddy."

"No problem, man," he said. And then after a few seconds more of silence, Teddy voiced a question Harry could tell he had been wanting to ask for a while. "Hey, were we friends in the other universe?"

Harry couldn't help but laugh. "Teddy, your father announced your birth less than a month ago for me. I was your godfather."

"What?" Teddy exclaimed. "Godfather?"

"Yeah, and Catherine didn't even...Sirius was..." he sighed.

Teddy got up and turned on the light, then sat back down on his bed, facing Harry. "You should just tell me the whole thing," he said, thoroughly interested.

Harry took a deep breath, figuring this was better than trying to sleep when nervous, and said, "Well, it's going to be a long night then."

* * *

"Come on, wake up," Catherine said impatiently as Harry tried his best to rub the sleep out of his eyes.

"Hmm?" he said sleepily, trying to block the light. He caught a glimpse of the clock beside him and saw that it was six in the morning. "Why are we up so early? It's a Saturday."

"You aren't excited to meet Hermione?" Catherine asked.

"It's not that," Harry said. What it really was was the fact that he had stayed up until around two in the morning telling Teddy the story of his life in the other universe.

"Then get up already, sleepyhead!" Catherine said, pulling his comforter off of him and exposing him to the cool, September morning air. "It'll take us awhile to get over there using muggle transportation."

"And why are we using muggle transportation?" Teddy asked groggily from the opposite side of the room from Harry. "Why can't we just apparate over there?"

"I already checked London's safe zones for apparation," Catherine said. "There aren't any within a couple miles."

Harry looked at her with his eyebrows drawn up in confusion. "Then why don't we apparate to a safe zone, _then_take public transportation to get there?"

Catherine sighed. "Fine," she said. "Then let's get going already!"

Teddy and Harry glanced at each other and decided there was going to be no more sleeping until they went to bed that night. So they grudgingly woke up and got ready for the day, Harry nervously checking his appearance in the mirror to make sure he looked his best for when he met this Hermione for the first time.

He may have already known what she was like, but this meeting would be her first impression of him.

Catherine took the two of them to an excellent bagel shop down the street from where she lived before they apparated to the safe zone closest to Hermione's house. From there, they mapped out the route they would have to take to get to her residence, and after a couple minor disagreements, they decided that it would be quicker to walk there rather than take taxi or bus.

As they were walking, Harry fell a little behind his two new, though not new to them, friends, and fell into deep thought.

Would this Hermione be the same as the Hermione he had known?

The answer to that, of course, was no, for this Hermione grew up with different experiences than the other Hermione. The Hermione in this universe probably would have been the same up until about eleven years old (minus the accidental bouts of magic), around the time she had received her letter for Hogwarts. So her base personality and nature should be the same, he figured, but she could have blossomed in a completely different direction for all he knew.

She could have become popular in High School, or, Harry thought to himself with horror, she may have even found a guy to go out with and could have a boyfriend at the moment.

Harry honestly figured that to be unlikely, though, for she had never been the type to try to fit in. Harry didn't know much about muggle schools except for his stint in grade school, but he figured that it was the people who wanted to fit in that actually fit in.

"We're here!" Teddy said excitedly, stopping in front of a walkway leading up to a modest-sized house.

The lawn was perfectly kept and the exterior of the house just as pristine. Not a single thing was out of place. Just as Harry had envisioned. There was a small, cute sign halfway up the walkway on one side that welcomed them. This was a house that was loved and well-kept.

As Harry walked up to the house, Cat and Teddy sticking back on the sidewalk, he figured he would discover in which direction Hermione blossomed when he finally got to see her and speak with her again, which would hopefully be in the immediate future.

He went up to the door, which was painted burgundy, and knocked firmly, then wiped his sweaty palms on his pants. His heart was fluttering in his chest and he couldn't swallow for some reason. He looked back at his friends for support and they both grinned and gave him the thumbs up, and he gave them a weak one in return.

It startled Harry a tiny bit when the door opened in front of him, and he quickly switched his attention to the person who had opened the door. It was who he presumed to be Hermione's father.

He was middle-aged, and wearing his dental outfit, along with rectangular spectacles that seemed to be too young to properly go along with his face. His greying hair was styled casually, but what caught Harry's attention the most was the cold, superior look in his eyes. It reminded him of the Malfoys.

"What do you want?" the man asked, the look on his face suggesting that he was looking at a pile of rotting dog droppings.

Harry swallowed hard. "I-Is Hermione here, sir?" he asked. "I'm her friend-"

"Friend?" the man asked coldly. "So that little brat finally managed to make a friend, did she? You must not be much of a friend if she didn't even tell you that she ran away from here several weeks ago."

"Ran away?" he asked, surprised. Why would Hermione ever do such a thing?

"Now please get off of my doorstep, you're infecting it with your filth," Mr. Granger said. He hesitated in closing the door, and smiled at Harry sarcastically and said, "And when you see her next, please thank her for running away from here. Bloody took her long enough."

And with that he slammed the door, leaving Harry stunned on the doorstep. No he wasn't so surprised that Hermione had run away. Her father certainly wasn't a pleasant man.

"Harry?" a voice asked hesitantly from behind him. It was Catherine. She and Teddy had come up to check on him.

"I'm going to kill him," Harry said under his breath, his hand subconsciously going for his wand in his pocket.

Teddy grabbed his arm firmly, though, and said, "Leave it."

Harry tore his arm from Teddy's grip and knocked on the door hard, not caring when his knuckles throbbed from the force. He was seeing red, and when Hermione's father opened the door again, a sneer on his face, Harry shouted, "Where is she?"

The man scoffed. "She's at the corner of piss off and get off my property before I call the police."

He slammed the door in their faces again, and this time Teddy and Catherine had to drag Harry back to the sidewalk and hold him there as he calmed down.

"It's okay, Harry," Teddy said. "We'll find her."

"How dare he!" Harry shouted. "How dare he talk to her and treat her like that!"

"Calm down, Harry, you're waking the neighbors," Catherine whispered, furtively looking at the people staring at him.

"I don't care," Harry said with a little more control. He took a deep breath and said, "Let's leave before I do something stupid."

Teddy and Catherine nodded their agreement and calmly walked back out of the residential area to the safe apparation zone. They apparated back in front of Catherine's house, and Harry kicked one of the decorative stones as hard as he could, hissing in a sharp breath at the pain in his foot, which only made him even more angry.

"Harry," Catherine said comfortingly, laying a hand on his arm.

"Just leave me alone for a minute," he said roughly, turning away from them. He didn't like losing his cool in front of people, but he just couldn't help it. He had never been so angry in his eighteen years of life.

How could anybody, let alone Hermione's own parents, treat her like that? Hermione had always loved her parents and was a strict rule-follower; something really bad must have been going on to make her run away like that.

"God...son of a...mother...urgh!" he shouted as he walked down the street alone, unchecked anger still boiling inside of him.

He walked up and down Catherine's street as a way to relieve his anger several times, slowly but surely calming down. On his sixth or seventh time past the Black residence, he heard a quiet voice ask, "You alright yet, son?"

Harry whipped around at the voice to snap at them for speaking at him like they were his father, then froze when he saw that it was actually his father!

"D-dad?" he said, all of his anger forgotten. Just like with his mother, he was rendered completely immobile and thoughtless by the presence of his father in front of him.

He looked just like Harry had always imagined. Messy hair, round spectacles, high cheekbones, and piercing Hazel eyes. Everything was exactly how he looked in the book Hagrid had given him

"Cat sent me a letter," said James. "She said she's never seen you so angry, and I must say that I quite agree."

"I am," Harry said, his previous anger flaring in him.

James slowly nodded. "Well, how about you tell me over some tea?" he asked, gesturing back towards the house. "No use in sitting out here in the sun."

Harry deflated again. He just couldn't keep the anger up now that it had ebbed. "Yeah, let's go inside," he said tiredly.

They headed inside, where there were already two cups of tea waiting for him.

Once they were settled, James took a sip of his tea and asked, "Now, why don't we start with why you three really left Hogwarts. The only thing Cat told me in the letter was that you were angry."

Harry blanched. "Dumbledore...didn't...?" he asked feebly, knowing he was a terrible liar.

"Harry," said James with a look that told him he wasn't believing it. "I'm your father. I was pretty much you once. Is it a girl?"

Was it really that obvious? Harry couldn't help but wonder to himself. Catherine, Dumbledore, Hagrid, and now his own father.

He sighed. "Look...D-dad," he said. "I can't explain everything now, but I promise I'll explain everything to you and mum soon. Properly," he added. Now that was a conversation he wasn't particularly looking forward to.

James's lips thinned, but he sighed nonetheless and said, "Very well. I won't tell any of this to your mother." He chuckled. "She actually believed the school excuse Dumbledore used."

Harry chuckled in response. Now that was just wishful denial on his mother's part. And the mention of Dumbledore reminded him of something. "Oh yeah Dad, i forgot to thank you for the broom. Sorry I won't be using it for the team."

James shrugged. "It would have been pretty cool to see you flying up there, but it's alright." He leaned forward, took on a more serious tone, and said, "Now, about this girl of yours."

"I haven't even confirmed or denied it yet!" Harry protested.

"Harry, Harry, Harry," James said, giving him that 'you-should-know-better' look again. "Come on, now."

Harry sighed. "Fine," he admitted. "What about it?"

"Do you love her?" James asked.

Harry held James's eye as he firmly said, "Yes."

"Then be patient," James said. "As long as you stay patient and never give up, like how I went after your mother, good things will come of it."

"I don't want her to think I'm a git for six years before we get together," Harry said, confused.

James blinked, shrugged, and said. "Not really my point, son. What I mean is that as long as you never give up, she'll be yours." He gently punched Harry's shoulder. "So keep your head up, yeah?"

Harry slowly nodded as he realized that his father was right. He hadn't even been properly searching for Hermione for half a day yet. There was no point in being so angry. He loved her. Everything would work out in the end.

"I have to get back to work, though, so I'll leave now," James said. "And I look forward to hearing everything from you about all of this. So does your mother." Harry nodded. "We love you, Harry. And we trust your decision. Make us proud and prove us correct...alright?"

Harry nodded determinedly. "Right," he said with conviction.

James stood up and gave him a hug that Harry returned. "Thanks, Dad," he said.

"Anytime, son," he said before he stepped back. Before he apparated, he grinned and said, "You'll have to name your first born after me for this."

And then he was gone, leaving Harry alone at the table. Teddy and Catherine must have heard the sound of James apparating, for they came down less than a minute later.

"You alright, Harry?" Catherine asked tentatively.

"Yeah," Harry said, then smiled. "Sorry about making you two worry."

"Sorry about contacting your dad, Harry," Teddy said, fidgeting. "But you were seriously freaking us out."

"No, it's fine," said Harry, waving it off. "I'm glad you guys did that, actually. He really put things into perspective for me."

Though neither of them understood, Catherine and Teddy both nodded. "Right," Catherine said slowly. "Anyway, do we want to do some brainstorming at a cafe? There's a new one that opened a couple blocks down."

Twenty minutes later, the three teens found themselves at the new cafe, which was only about half full, it being a weekday and all.

"Nice little place, isn't it?" Teddy said, looking around at the mahogany furniture.

Neither Harry nor Catherine answered, and Teddy let out a little, awkward laugh before turning to Catherine and engaging her in conversation. Not that Harry cared, really. He was too busy thinking about the possible places Hermione could have run off to. Somewhere with books, obviously.

He was staring unseeingly at the wall opposite the one they were sitting at, when somebody suddenly broke his concentration by walking into his field of vision.

She was about five foot seven, Harry's age, had curly brown hair, magnificent chocolate-brown eyes, was wearing the workplace's apron, and had a smile that made Harry's insides flutter. She was the most beautiful girl Harry had ever seen, and he felt his heart stop as he really registered that what he was seeing wasn't a dream.

The waitress walked right up to their table, smiled a smile that made Harry's stomach churn pleasantly, and said,

"Thanks for coming to the Corner Cafe! I'm Hermione and I'll be helping you today."

**A/N: Finally, Hermione makes her grand entrance! Look out for another chapter within the next week; I finally have some free time! Also, I know that everything is progressing incredibly quickly in terms of the timeline of the story, but it's all intentional...I promise!**

**I hope you enjoyed it and I hope to see a review!**


	5. Little Talks

**Come Back to Me 5 - Little Talks**

"So, are you three ready to order yet?" Hermione asked, taking out a pen and notepad.

Harry's eyes were glued on her and he found that his brain had completely stopped functioning. Nothing mattered at that point other than the fact that Hermione was standing in front of him, alive and well.

Teddy and Catherine were staring at Hermione with their mouths wide open. What were the odds of something like this happening?

"Er...excuse me?" Hermione said, fidgeting. "Is there something on my face?"

Catherine quickly shook her head and cleared her throat. "Erm...uh...no, sorry," she said.

She and Teddy ordered, then when Harry didn't do anything but stare at Hermione, Catherine ordered for him. Hermione smiled, gave Harry an odd look when she noticed his was still staring at her, then turned around and headed back to the kitchen, where Harry finally stopped looking at her since she was out of sight.

"Harry," Teddy said, his eyes wide.

"She's beautiful," Catherine said.

Harry could do nothing but laugh weakly. How was it possible for him to get so lucky?

"She thinks you're weird, Harry," Teddy said. "You did nothing but stare at her."

Unfortunately for Harry, he had just taken a sip of his water. And unfortunately for Teddy, Harry spat the water all over him when he realized his friend was right.

"What do I do?" he asked frantically as Teddy wiped his face with a napkin.

"Just talk to her normally, you dolt," Catherine said.

"Right," said Harry, who was feeling his stomach fluttering in a mixture of anticipation and nerves again. If he knew that she was going to be here, he would have prepared what he was going to say beforehand. She had caught him off-guard.

He took a deep breath, steeling his determination as he did so.

He could do this.

* * *

"I can't believe you didn't say anything the entire time we were there," Teddy said disappointedly.

"Yeah, well..." stuttered Harry, annoyed. He really hadn't said anything. "It got busy. I didn't want to distract her from her work."

"That's a load of rubbish and you know it," said Catherine. "There were only two other people in there the entire hour and a half we were in there."

"I...I..." said Harry. "I just, I don't know. I'll go back later today and talk to her."

"Nah, that'll just look weird," said Teddy. "We were just there and the shop closes at five, which is in two hours. I think it would strike Hermione as odd if you showed up again so soon after leaving."

"Then I'll come back tomorrow," said Harry with determination.

"Great!" said Catherine. "So what time are we leaving then?"

Harry thought a second before answering. "I think it would be easier if I went alone tomorrow, guys."

"What?" Teddy and Catherine exclaimed at the same time.

Harry made an apologetic face to them. "I'm sorry, guys. I really am. I appreciate you both sticking by my side for this, but I think the best way you two can help at the moment is to let me bond with Hermione one on one."

Catherine looked like she was going to respond angrily, but Teddy put an arm in front of her, silencing her. "He's right, Cat," he said. "It would be awkward to be so adamant about talking to her when he has two friends he could be talking to instead."

Catherine still looked like she wanted to protest, but after a pointed look from Teddy, she gave up and sighed. "Fine," she said. "Though I'm not all too happy about it."

As the three of them turned on to Catherine's street, Harry said, "Just be patient, Cat. You'll get to meet her and know her soon enough. You two are a lot alike. I'm sure you'll hit it off immediately," Harry added.

Catherine smiled. "Really?" she asked, excited.

"Yep," said Harry, grinning. His grin grew wider when an idea struck him.

He asked, "Cat, do you read any Jane Austen?"

* * *

The next day, Harry sat inside of Corner Cafe at eleven AM, the only one there, Catherine's battered and worn copy of _Pride and Prejudice _held in his hands. It was open about halfway through the book even though Harry hadn't read one word of it. Instead, he had used Catherine's laptop to read a thorough summary of the novel, which was Hermione's favorite.

"Welcome to Corner Cafe. My name is Hermione and I'll be helping you today. Is there anything I can get you right now?"

Harry thumbed the page he was on as though he intended to continue reading at where he had left off before looking up and smiling at Hermione.

"Oh, it's you again," she said, smiling.

"It's me again," he agreed, inwardly cringing. Why couldn't he talk to her normally? He never talked like this!

"Well, what can I get for you today?" she asked.

Harry put the book down with the cover facing up so Hermione could see what he was reading and he picked up the menu, pretending to deliberate over what he wanted even though he had decided as soon as he got there.

"I'd like a full breakfast with coffee," he said.

Hermione smiled and said, "I'll be back with your coffee in a bit."

"Thank you," Harry replied.

Hermione nodded and left, and Harry picked up the book, disappointed that Hermione hadn't commented on his reading choice.

But when she came back a few minutes later with his coffee, she asked, "What are you reading?"

Harry looked up at her in surprise and she blushed. "Oh...er...I mean, it's alright if you don't want to tell me."

"No, not at all," Harry said, then turned the book over and showed her the cover.

She gasped and her face lit up in delight. "I love that book. I remember when my dad..."

She froze, her eyes not focused on the book, and when she came back to, her shoulders slumped a little and her face darkened. "I'll go get your food," she said quietly.

As soon as Hermione was out of sight, Harry cringed. Of course he chose the book her dad used to read to her. "Crap," he mumbled into his hands, which were covering his face.

He closed the book and put it to the side as he waited for his food, thinking about how he would break the ice now that the _Pride and Prejudice _option was out the window.

Hermione came back a few minutes later, though with more food than Harry had ordered. He looked around the cafe to find there was nobody else. Who could the extra food have been for?

"Here's your food," Hermione said, back to her normal demeanor. She put his food in front of him, then said, "And...erm...I'm on break now."

She waited for Harry to say something, and when he didn't, she slowly turned red and went to turn away. It wasn't until she had taken a step that Harry realized why she had told him that.

"Hermione," he said suddenly, and she immediately stopped and turned to face him, her face expectant. "Do you want to join me?" he asked.

Hermione froze, making Harry think for a horrible second that he had misread her cues. Then she smiled and said, "If you don't mind."

Harry shook his head and gestured to the seat across from him. Hermione sat her food down and sat down behind it nervously, glancing up at him as she took a bite.

After she swallowed, she said, "I'm sorry, but I never caught your name."

"I'm Harry," Harry replied. "Harry Potter."

"Hermione Granger," she said in return, holding her hand out awkwardly over the table.

Harry took her hand and shook it, holding it a bit longer than necessary. Being able to feel her hand reinforced the fact that she was alive, well, and right in front of him.

They quickly fell into a silence as they ate, neither of them quite knowing what to say and looking anywhere but each other.

Finally, when Harry couldn't stand the silence anymore, he said, "So...how long have you worked here?"

Hermione carefully swallowed her food before saying, "About two weeks. I really like it here."

Harry nodded, satisfied with her answer, then asked, "If you don't mind my asking, why aren't you in school?"

Hermione narrowed her eyes at him and grinned. "I could ask you the same."

Harry didn't take his eyes away from hers and said, "I go to a boarding school. I'm at home for personal reasons, still studying and taking my tests and everything."

Hermione was caught off guard by his easy, practiced answer and said, "I...I graduated last year."

"You aren't going to university?" Harry asked.

Hermione smiled wistfully. "I couldn't afford it."

Harry felt a pang go through his heart at the sad expression on her face. "Why didn't you get a scholarship?" he asked. "You're certainly smart enough."

Hermione narrowed her eyes at him for real this time. "How do you know how smart I am?" she asked.

Harry blanched, sweat beading on his forehead. He had said what he said out of passion. "Erm...I just...I assumed, based on my interactions with you. You give off a vibe of being incredibly intelligent."

Hermione stayed suspicious for a second longer before settling back into her chair. "Well, thank you for the compliment," she said. " I think it's about time I got back to work."

Harry nodded to her and buried his face in his coffee so he wouldn't have to look at her keen eyes, afraid that the truth would be visible in his own. He knew she would be able to read him just as well in this universe as she did in the other - she was just that kind of person.

"Gosh darnit," he mumbled to himself as he continued eating his breakfast.

Had he screwed it up already?

He sighed and reclined in his chair when he was finished, bringing the book up to his face. A young couple had come in while he was eating, but they were already finished, so Harry decided he would wait once to see if Hermione would approach him once more.

He waited patiently at his table, thinking about how to best continue. And by the time the couple had left the cafe, Harry had decided.

He went up to Hermione, who was cleaning the table, and said, "Do you have a moment, Hermione?"

Hermione paused, then stood up to face him. She wasn't smiling.

Harry decided to disregard the fact. "I was just wondering if...er...you were doing anything after work."

Hermione looked at him skeptically. "I can honestly say that I've never been asked out, which is what you're doing, right?" she asked somewhat coldly.

_Well that isn't good,_Harry thought to himself. "Erm...yes?" he said hesitantly. What if that wasn't the right answer?

Hermione took a deep breath. "Harry...if that's even your real name, I don't know what you want from me, but if it's sex, I'm not giving you any."

Harry recoiled. "What?" he said, confused. "Who ever said-"

"I get it," Hermione said angrily, clutching the cleaning towel in her hand. "You could easily spot that I was a geeky, nerdy girl and thought I would be an easy mark. I've never been asked out by a boy, especially one as handsome as you. What could possibly be any reason that you'd ask me out, especially after lying to me?"

"Lying?" Harry said, feigning innocence.

Hermione pressed her lips together. "There you go, doing it again. Did you and your friends laugh about it on the way out yesterday and decide to play a prank on me? Is that it?"

Harry frowned. "I'm asking you out because I think you're beautiful," he asserted, shocking Hermione into silence. "There. Did that sound like a lie?" he asked smugly.

"No," Hermione admitted. "But there's still _something_you're lying to me about, and I don't like it."

She waited for what Harry assumed was the truth, which he honestly wasn't in a position to give at the moment. She would just think he was crazy. "Look, Hermione, I'm not asking you out for any other reason than the fact that I truly wish to spend more time with you. I promise you that the secret I'm carrying is in no way harmful to you or your feelings."

Hermione stared at him for a long moment, then sighed. "Harry," she said wearily. "To be frank, I have a history of being betrayed by the men in my life. Granted, none of them have ever been a boyfriend, but I'm tired of being lied to and hurt. I don't care what your secret is, but the fact that you're lying sets you up for failure before the fact."

Harry's shoulders slumped a little. He opened his mouth to say something - what, he did not know - then decided against it and began walking towards the door. Then, as soon as he touched the handle, the words his father had told him the previous day resonated in his head.

_As long as you never give up, she'll be yours_.

Man, was Harry glad he had had a word with his dad.

He turned around to look at Hermione, who was watching him leave, her face indifferent. He grinned at her confidently and said, "You better be prepared, Hermione. I'm going to be here every day until your answer is yes. You can count on it."

Harry met her eyes to show he was sincere, and he swore he saw her lips twitch into the barest hint of a smile. He was sure that her cheeks turned pink, too. Then she huffed and stuck her nose up, looking at Harry coolly.

And with that, he confidently walked out of the cafe, his head held high.

* * *

"So how did it go?" Catherine asked. She was waiting for him at the kitchen table, and Teddy was nowhere to be found.

"Well," said Harry slowly, thinking of how to best answer. "Good and bad," he said neutrally.

Catherine blinked, confused. "Good...and bad?"

Harry explained the situation to her, and only after he was done did she stand up and say, "Sit," gesturing to one of the chairs at the table.

Harry obeyed and thanked Cat when she tossed him a soda, which he popped open and immediately took a swig of as his female friend took her seat across from him again. Catherine took a long pull from her own soda before seriously looking him in the eye and saying, "She wants to say yes."

Harry choked on his soda. "What?" he exclaimed in surprise. She had very clearly said no.

"She's confused, especially since she's never been out with a guy before and you told me that she told you she had a problem with being abandoned by the men in her life," Cat explained. "She wants to be completely sure you're sincerely serious before she trusts you with her heart."

"That makes sense," Harry said in awe.

Catherine smiled at him. "Of course it does," she said. "I'm a girl. I know how she thinks."

Harry sighed and reclined in his chair. "Thanks for the help, Cat. It really means a lot to me," he said.

"Anytime, Harry," she said. "Anytime."

They were silent for a second as they took a sip from their drinks, then Harry asked, "So...how do I show her I'm...'sincerely serious?'"

Catherine leaned forward and placed her hand over his, her eyes looking into his with seriousness. "You never give up."

Harry couldn't help but chuckle, making Catherine frown. "That's two votes for 'never give up,'" he said. "My dad said the same thing."

Teddy walked in at that moment, a grin on his face. "Harry," he said. "How'd it go?"

Harry shrugged noncommittally and took another sip of his soda. Teddy frowned, but the frown was quickly replaced by the eager grin. "You won't believe it, Harry. Caitlyn sent a letter that says she's coming back tomorrow!"

Harry looked over at Catherine, who turned away from Teddy, her face falling. Harry wondered what this was all about and opened his mouth to say so, but Teddy caught his mistake. "Oh, that's right," he said, still as excited as a kid who discovered Christmas would be coming early. "Caitlyn is Cat's older sister." The eager grin turned into a stupid, dreamy one. "And the most beautiful woman on the face of the earth."

Harry froze at that and quickly looked back at Catherine, who abruptly stood up, her chair making a loud sound as it scraped across the floor. She glanced at Harry, her eyes full of hurt, then left the kitchen without saying a word.

Harry turned back to Teddy, who looked confused. After a moment of silence, the smile slowly slid from his face and he said, "Harry...what just happened?"

So this is how frustrating it must have felt for the others knowing he loved Hermione without realizing it himself. "Teddy," he began, then decided to not tell him that Catherine liked him. That might only serve to drive a wedge between the three of them. Instead, he asked, "What are your feelings for Cat?"

"She's my best friend," Teddy answered with confidence.

"Are you friends with Caitlyn?" Harry asked.

"Of course," Teddy said, then grinned. "But I wouldn't mind being a little more, if you know what I mean. She's just so...perfect," he sighed.

Harry sighed in a manner completely different than Teddy and stood up. "Well, Teddy, I'm going to go find Cat and find out what's wrong, and you go do whatever you need to do to get ready for Caitlyn's arrival," he said.

Teddy blinked. "You don't want my help with Cat?" he asked. "I mean, we're both her friends."

Harry stood up and patted Teddy's shoulder. "Leave Cat to me," he said. "I think I know what's bothering her and I think I'm the only one who can help her out."

Teddy looked at Harry oddly. "Okay..." he said slowly, watching Harry leave the room.

Harry walked through the spacious living room and looked out of the sliding glass window to find Catherine sitting on the side of the pool with her shoes next to her, her feet in the water. He rubbed his brow, sighed, and stepped outside into the sun, closing the glass door beside him and walking out to Catherine's side. He kicked off his shoes, took off his socks, rolled up his jeans, and took a seat beside her, his feet in the water just like hers.

She was slowly kicking her feet back and forth, her back hunched over and her eyes locked on the rippling water around her legs. She didn't seem to have noticed Harry's presence.

Well, he thought she hadn't, but she sniffed quietly and fell to the side so her head was resting on Harry's arm, which was being used to hold his body up as he leaned back.

"I knew this was going to happen," she said quietly, her feet now motionless in the water. "It happens every time."

Harry stayed quiet, knowing it would hurt her to ask the obvious question aloud.

"Whenever Caitlyn's not around, it feels like..." she trailed off, unable to finish.

"Feels like Teddy might like you?" Harry asked softly, receiving a nod that he wouldn't have been able to notice if not for the fact that her head was leaning against his arm.

"Then I get home, or...or I receive a letter from my sister, or Teddy hears Caitlyn's name," she continued. "Then it's Caitlyn this, Caitlyn that. I just can't compare to my sister."

Harry really had no idea what to say, but it seemed that Catherine was on a roll. "Caitlyn's three years older than us, you know," she said. "And it's not even the fact that Teddy's much more attracted to her than me that's getting to me - I'm used to that."

"What is it, then?" Harry asked, turning to look at her.

Catherine took a deep, long breath and slowly let it out. "Well...she got engaged about a week ago." Harry froze. This was getting more complicated by the second. "That's what she told me in her last letter. I...I didn't show Teddy, and I don't know how to tell him. I thought I'd have more time."

"Well," said Harry. He cleared his throat as he thought of how to follow up on that. "That's good for you then, right? You can come in and comfort him and save the day."

Catherine immediately sat up straight and turned to look at him with angry tears in her eyes. "How can you say that?" she said. "Can you imagine what Teddy's going to be feeling?"

Harry flinched a bit. "Well, it's just a crush, right?" he said weakly. "He'll get over it quickly enough."

Catherine brought her feet up out of the pool and buried her face in her knees, saying into them, "I wasn't supposed to hear this, Harry, but about two months ago, I heard Teddy confess to you that he was in love with my sister. They used to always hang out at Hogwarts and when we were at home, though they drifted apart naturally, of course. He started liking her awhile ago. I think...I think she's seen him as a surrogate little brother since they started hanging out." She swallowed hard. "Caitlyn went to school in the U.S. This will be her first time back in two years."

"She met a guy over there and fell in love?" he asked, though he already knew the answer.

"She's bringing him over to introduce him to the family," she whispered. "Then they're moving into their apartment several miles from here, which they've already purchased."

Harry sighed. "So what do we do?"

"I don't know," Catherine admitted. She turned to look at him sadly. "What I want _you_to do is focus on Hermione. I'll focus on my own relationship with Teddy...alright? Everything will work out. I promise."

"Are you sure there's nothing I can do to help you?" Harry asked. He really felt bad for her. "How are you going to tell him?"

"I don't know, Harry," she admitted. "I'm afraid that he'll grow to not like me if I bear the bad news. But I don't want him hating my sister, either." She sat up on her knees and gripped his face with both of her hands, making sure he looked into her determined eyes. "So I'll repeat myself, and this time you'll listen. The best way for you to help me right now is to focus on how you're going to get Hermione to go out with you."

"But-"

The sound of the wards being broken at that point startled both of them, followed with the sound of the doorbell being rang reaching their ears. Catherine frowned and stood up, walking inside with Harry closely following. Who could possibly be ringing the doorbell at four in the afternoon?

Catherine opened the door and immediately froze, Harry freezing right behind her.

An insanely beautiful young woman was standing in the doorway with a small luggage bag in hand and a radiant smile on her face. There was an Audi parked in the driveway that a man was grabbing more luggage from.

"Catherine!" the woman cried, hugging her tightly. Cat didn't move a single inch. The woman pulled back and held Cat at arms' length. "What's the matter. Not happy to see me?"

"I thought...your letter said you weren't going to be here until tomorrow," Cat said numbly.

"We ended up catching an earlier, sold-out flight that a few people backed out on," Caitlyn replied. "So we got here today. It does take a couple days for an owl to make it here all the way from Stanford, you know."

_She was sending owls from a muggle university?_Harry thought to himself, confused, before Caitlyn wrapped him in a hug, saying, "I didn't see you there, Harry! I think it's weird that you three aren't at school right now, but dad called me and told me that you guys were doing something top secret for school," she said, amused. So she could tell when her father was lying, too. "Speaking of you three, where's Teddy?"

"Right here," Teddy said from the doorway, a big grin on his face. His hair was done messily though methodically, and he was wearing a collared shirt. He didn't know Teddy could clean up so well.

He walked up and hugged Caitlyn, who hugged him back, and when they pulled apart, Teddy said, "I have something important to tell you, Cait."

"Oh, hang on," she said. "I have something important to tell you and Harry first."

The man walked up with the luggage and stood right next to her a little awkwardly, adjusting his rectangular glasses on his face. He had dirty blond hair and a genuine smile, and Harry found himself already liking this man's character before he even opened his mouth.

Caitlyn smiled at him, looked back at the three teenagers, and said, "Catherine, Harry, Teddy, I'd like you to meet Marcus, my fiance."

**A/N: Gah, another cliffhanger! I know I suck at keeping my promises right now, but I'm working on something original of mine and find myself stuck on that. I won't make any promises this time, but I'll be sure to get the next chapter up as soon as I can!**


	6. The Unforgiven

**A/N: To those worried that this is going to be a Harry/OC story, I assure you 100% that this is going to be Harry/Hermione! There are a lot of OCs, but I'm at the point where I'm going to introduce only one or two more, and they won't be as big in the story as Teddy, Cat, and Caitlyn. I'm adding a complicated little romance between Teddy and Cat to thicken out the story line and add more tough situations for Harry to deal with.**

**Harry/Hermione all the way! I'll go down with this ship!**

**Anyway, now that that's over, I hope you enjoy the chapter!**

**Chapter 6 - The Unforgiven**

"...Your what?" Teddy asked, horror in his eyes.

"Cat didn't tell you?" Caitlyn asked, looking at her sister in confusion. "I sent her a letter a week ago telling her that I was getting married."

Teddy, his eyes full of hurt, looked over at Catherine, who looked down at the floor in shame, her ears red.

There was silence for a couple seconds, and when Harry couldn't take it any longer, he turned to Marcus and said, "I'm Harry Potter, nice to meet you."

Marcus grinned, obvious relief on his face at the awkward silence being broken, and gripped Harry's outstretched hand. "Nice to meet you, Harry."

"I'm Catherine," Cat said next, though Harry could tell she was doing her best not to look at Teddy, who hadn't moved an inch. "Caitlyn's sister. We're glad to welcome you into our family!"

Marcus relaxed a little as he brushed aside Cat's handshake to hug her, saying, "We're family now, right?"

And finally, everyone turned to Teddy, who was still staring at the ground with his fists clenched. The awkwardness began to settle around them again, and then Teddy suddenly looked back up, a grin on his face. "Nice to meet you, Marcus. I'm Teddy Lupin."

They shook hands, and when they broke apart, Caitlyn seemed to be thoroughly relieved. "Well, shall we go in and get something to eat? We're starving!"

"Yeah," Harry and Cat said, but Teddy stood still.

"I think I'll be going to bed now," he said, not looking up.

"Teddy?" Caitlyn said. "It's only four in the afternoon."

"I'm tired," he said quietly and began walking towards the stairs.

"Teddy," Catherine said pleadingly, placing a hand on his shoulder.

He froze and shrugged her hand away. "I said I'm tired," he said a little harshly, then dashed up the stairs, slamming the door behind him when he got in the room.

The remaining four people downstairs remained in an awkward silence for a moment before Caitlyn turned to Marcus and said, "Well, perhaps we should take our things upstairs."

The couple went upstairs, leaving Harry and Catherine alone in front of the now-closed door. Harry glanced over at his friend to find that she was looking over at the stairs, her teeth worrying her lower lip.

"I have to talk to him," she said. She turned to Harry and said, "You coming?"

Harry nodded solemnly and followed Catherine up the stairs, and when they reached the guys' bedroom, Catherine tentatively knocked. When she received no answer, she quietly opened the door and Harry followed, casting a silencing ward around the room after he closed the door.

Teddy didn't look up or react to their entrance at all. He was sitting on the edge of one of the sides of the bed, his hands gripping the edge of the bed so hard that his knuckles were white.

Catherine tentatively went to Teddy's side and sat down beside him as Harry decided to stay farther away, leaning against the door and folding his arms over his chest.

"Teddy," he heard Catherine whisper. "Are you okay?"

After receiving no reaction, Cat glanced over at Harry before gently putting an arm around her friend's shoulders. Teddy didn't react to this either.

"Teddy?" Catherine asked, giving his shoulders a gentle squeeze. "Teddy, it'll be alright."

More silence. Silence for over a minute this time. Then, Teddy said, his voice gravelly and malicious, "Why didn't you tell me?"

Harry felt his heart skip a beat and he stood up straight. This was definitely not the direction they wanted the conversation going in.

"I wanted to, Teddy, I really did," Catherine said.

"Then why didn't you?" Teddy asked quietly, still looking straight ahead.

"I know how deep your feelings are for her and I didn't know how to break it to you properly," Catherine said.

Teddy finally glanced over at her. "So you thought it would be better for me to find out like this?" he said, his voice rising a little. "You thought it would be funny to watch how I reacted?"

"How could you say that?" Catherine asked. "Seeing you down there made me wish I had told you when I first knew."

Teddy snorted. "Took you that long to figure out? You sure have one hell of a brain on you, don't you?"

Harry saw Catherine's face crumple and she retracted her arm from around Teddy's shoulders to clutch into a fist at her side. "I'm sorry, Teddy," she whispered, and Harry saw a tear making its way down the cheek that was facing him.

Teddy took a long pause, then let out a long sigh. "I know, Catherine," he said slowly. "I know you're sorry, and I'm sorry for being mean. I just...I need to be left alone right now."

Catherine looked at him for a long moment before she slowly stood up and walked towards the door, which Harry opened for her. She exited the room, leaving Harry alone with Teddy, who sighed and laid down with his hands under his head.

"Taking your anger out on her made you feel like a big man, didn't it?" Harry asked.

Teddy sighed again. "I know, Harry, I'm just upset. She'll get over it."

Harry sighed too. "Teddy, you know...Catherine, she..." Harry stumbled over the words, then realized it wasn't his place to tell Teddy that Cat liked him. "Well, you owe her more than that half-hearted apology, mate."

Teddy remained silent as he stared at the ceiling, his eyes slowly filling with tears. "I know," he said, his voice gravelly.

Harry left the room to give Teddy some privacy, coming face to face with Caitlyn as he closed the door.

"Hey Caitlyn," Harry said as way of greeting.

"Harry," she said, smiling. "Teddy doing alright in there? He seemed kind of off."

Harry forced a smile on his face. "Er...he's just a bit under the weather, I think," he said.

"Good, good," she said, though the look in her eyes told Harry she knew more than she was letting on. "Catherine told me about you."

Harry looked at her, confused. "What exactly did she tell you about me?"

"Everything," Caitlyn said. "Including the fact that you're not our Harry."

"I really hope I can become everyone's Harry, because I really have no idea how to reverse this magic," Harry said.

Caitlyn shrugged. "I'm sure you'll be just fine. The only thing I notice that's different is the scar." Her lips thinned. "And the outgoingness and the lack of memory of our time spent together."

Harry chuckled. "Other than that, completely the same, right?"

Caitlyn nodded, then grinned, holding out her hand. "Caitlyn Black, surrogate older sister to you. You love me so much that you bake me cookies on command," she said.

Harry shook her hand. "Harry Potter, now surrogate younger brother to you. I would love to make cookies for you, but I honestly have no idea how to."

Caitlyn pouted. "Well, it was worth a shot," she said. "And I can't wait to meet the girl you're in love with! Can I come to the cafe with you tomorrow? I'll go with Marcus so it doesn't seem as though I'm with you."

"If you want," said Harry, shrugging.

Caitlyn smiled. "Great!" she said, hooking her arm through his. "I'm sure my dad's home by now, so let's go get some dinner!"

They headed downstairs and into the dining room, where Harry found Sirius talking animatedly to Marcus about baseball and quidditch. They seemed to be comparing each other's favorite sports.

"Dad!" Caitlyn said excitedly.

"Cait!" he said, jumping up and hugging her. As he did, he motioned Harry to the back of the house with his eyes.

Harry nodded and headed back to the backyard, where he found Catherine again on one of the poolside chairs.

Harry sat down on the one next to it. "You really like it back here, don't you?" he asked.

Harry fell into silence as Catherine didn't answer, though he really didn't blame her. The sun was casting out its last few feeble rays of sunlight, painting the sky a beautiful spectrum of colors. Harry, recognizing Catherine's mood, reclined back and took in the colors, trying his best to comfort her with his presence.

"I think I'll need some help," she finally whispered after almost ten minutes of silence. She looked over at him vulnerably. "I know I said to focus on Hermione, but if the offer still stands...well, I'd really appreciate your support."

Harry smiled. "I'll help you however you want me to, Cat. I'm here for you."

Catherine smiled, tears pooling in her eyes. "You know, you really are Harry."

"I know," he said and laid back against the chair again, Catherine doing the same.

They fell into silence again, but a few minutes later Harry heard Catherine's breathing even out. He sighed and casted a warming charm around her. This way if she didn't wake up for the rest of the night, there would be no danger of her catching a cold.

Harry headed inside and into the dining room, where Amelia was now seated with her husband, daughter, and soon to be son-in-law.

He noticed three empty chairs and sat down at one, saying, "Sorry for my tardiness."

"Everything alright with Catherine and Teddy?" Amelia asked.

"They're both fine, but Catherine fell asleep in the back and Teddy won't be joining us," Harry said.

Harry glanced over at Caitlyn to find her frowning down at her food and Marcus was still nervous.

"Help yourself, Harry," said Sirius, who also seemed to know more than he was letting on. "Dinner was made by yours truly. I know how much you love my cooking!"

"Thank you," said Harry as he reached in and took a piece of chicken that looked especially tender from the plate in the middle.

Caitlyn suddenly started laughing and Harry looked up to find Amelia also giggling behind her hand. "Dad, if you had cooked this I would have ordered take-out," Caitlyn said.

Sirius scowled. "I was trying to fool Harry into thinking my cooking had improved. Can't a guy dream about such things?"

Harry grinned and bit into the chicken, which Amelia had no doubt prepared. Sirius had done a good job in completely changing the atmosphere around the table, and Harry saw Marcus slowly but surely becoming more comfortable as the dinner went on. Sirius and Amelia took a good-enough liking to him too, for which Caitlyn seemed to be grateful.

Soon enough dinner was over and Harry went into the kitchen so Amelia could teach him how to dry dishes magically, especially since he could now use magic outside of school. In reality, he knew that it was to give Sirius some alone time with his daughter and her fiance.

As soon as they were done with the dishes, Harry headed into the living room, intending to check up on Catherine only to find that she was now sleeping on one of the sofas. Marcus was sitting in the chair that was adjacent to the sofa, and looked up, startled, at Harry when he entered the room.

Harry cleared his throat and took a seat on the sofa opposite the one Catherine said. "You really need to take it easy," he said, and Marcus nervously tapped his knee. "Her parents really love you, and Sirius is an easy-going prankster. He wouldn't harm a fly. So stop being so nervous, because you're making me nervous."

Marcus thought carefully about Harry's words and glanced around the room before sighing and reclining back in the chair. "I guess you're right," he said. He glanced over at Cat. "I carried her in because I was afraid she would get cold."

"Good man," Harry said, oddly feeling in a position of power. This guy was so desperate for the approval of everyone close to Caitlyn that Harry almost felt sorry for him. He also decided to not point out to Marcus that there was literally no possibility of Catherine becoming cold since she had a warming charm placed on her. The intention was there and that was all that mattered.

"I'm heading up for the night," Harry then said, standing and stretching.

He bade Marcus and the Black family good night before heading upstairs to find Teddy sitting on the floor with one knee up, his eyes staring unseeingly at the foot that was stretched away from him.

Harry crouched in front of him. "You alright there, Teddy?" he asked.

Teddy glanced up at him. "Yeah..." he said. "How's Cat?"

Harry shrugged. "Asleep downstairs." He stood up and sat on his bed, taking his shoes off as he said, "Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day than today."

Teddy got up and climbed into his own bed. "Much better," he said, then rolled over to face the wall.

Harry finished getting ready for bed and climbed in, sincerely believing in his words.

* * *

Harry woke up the next morning to find Teddy's bed empty. He frowned and rubbed his head, then got up and began getting ready for the day.

He yawned and headed downstairs, where he found Caitlyn and Marcus waiting on the couch for him, their heads together as they whispered to each other.

"Have you guys seen Teddy?" Harry asked.

Caitlyn shrugged. "Left the house really early this morning without telling anybody where he was going." Her eyes lit up. "Are we going to the cafe now?"

Harry nodded right as Catherine entered the room, a scowl on her face. "I hope I'm invited too," she grumbled. "'M bored."

"Sure," Harry said, and they left the house together.

Harry walked in front with Catherine at his side while Caitlyn and Marcus walked a few feet behind them. Catherine was walking with her shoulders slumped and her head down, a permanent scowl seemingly etched upon her face.

"You alright?" Harry asked quietly as they walked, concerned at Catherine's defeated posture.

"Fine," she said harshly. "Absolutely peachy."

"Cat," Harry said soothingly. "It'll turn out alright in the end; you just have to believe it will."

She glanced over at him, a distasteful look on her face. "Don't give me that crap, Harry. That's something mothers say to their five-year-old children."

Harry was about to angrily retort, then saw the tears swimming in her eyes. Instead, he smiled at her and said, "You know the great things about mothers? What they say when you're younger and seems unbelievable can actually turn out to be true." Cat's glare softened in surprise. "Think about it," Harry continued. "If you have a horrible attitude, Teddy isn't going to want to have a good attitude himself. On the other hand, if you do your best, it might so happen that Teddy does his. You never know. All I do know is that much more good can come out of a good attitude than a bad one. Nothing good ever comes out of a bad attitude."

Catherine was silent for several seconds as she mulled over his words, then meekly said, "Sorry."

Harry grinned at her. "That's what friends are for, right?"

Catherine nodded, a new fire in her eyes. "I'll help Teddy through his troubles no matter what."

"That's the spirit!" Harry said as they arrived at the cafe. He turned to Cat and said, "Well, here goes nothing."

"Good luck Harry!" Catherine and Caitlyn said in unison as he entered the cafe and took his usual seat, surprised to find that Hermione was nowhere in sight.

Instead, a smiling, middle-aged woman wearing an apron walked out from the kitchen, the only evidence that she wasn't still a young woman being the tiny crow's feet and slightly-graying hair. At first, Harry thought the smile was friendly, warm smile. What he discovered when she got closer was that the smile was a cold, threatening smile.

"Hello, Harry Potter," she said.

"You know my name?" he replied warily. Had he done something?

"I hear many things from my kitchen," she said, gesturing with a wooden spoon. Harry's throat went dry. This was one woman he did not want to mess with. "Hermione may not want to say anything about you, but I know exactly what you want. And I have to tell you: If you hurt Hermione, you will regret ever being born."

Harry nodded, his throat too dry to speak. He definitely didn't want to trifle with her.

"I'm Mary," she said, her smile turning friendly. "The owner of this restaurant. And even taking into account everything I just said, I truly hope you can make Hermione happy. Although she may be wary to trust you, which is understandable, I hear the sincerity in your voice when you were telling her why you wanted to go out with her. I'm cheering for you!"

Harry was surprised at how quickly Mary turned from cold and ruthless to warm and motherly.

"You seem really nice," she continued, "but if Hermione says you're lying about something, then it must be true. Hmm..." She adjusted her apron in a manner that made Harry think she did it as a nervous habit. "As long as Hermione stays happy, I'm going to treat you to free food. She deserves some happiness, and even though she seemed mad yesterday, when she came into the kitchen she was the happiest I've ever seen her be."

"Y-you don't need to give me free food," Harry stammered, surprised. So not only was this woman not to be trifled with, she was very keen and incredibly nice. Interesting. "I'm thankful enough that you're allowing me to get close to Hermione. You seem to care about her very much."

Mary sighed. "I love Hermione like a daughter. She helped me pull through a difficult time, what with my husband-"

She suddenly cut off, her eyes going wide. Harry coughed lightly and rubbed at his nose as Mary collected herself. "Well, the point is that I love Hermione like a daughter and sure hope I'm doing a better job mothering her than her mother," she said with a satisfied nod. She then gave Harry a look that sent chills down his spine. "And you're eating for free; do you hear me?"

Harry nodded quickly, and Mary smiled again. "Good," she said. "I'll go get Hermione so she can take your order."

As Mary disappeared into the kitchen, Harry spotted Caitlyn, Marcus, and Catherine sitting in a booth that was up against an adjacent wall to his own. Catherine was sitting in the booth so she was facing away from Harry, her head down as she perused the menu. Catherine and Marcus, on the other hand, were giving Harry identical thumbs up with grins on their faces. Harry grinned right back at them.

Hermione came out of the kitchen with her pen and notepad, then stopped when she saw who her customer was. From across the room, she asked, "Same as yesterday?" to which Harry nodded. Hermione then disappeared back into the kitchen quickly and popped back out, heading over to Caitlyn, Catherine, and Marcus's table.

She took their order and disappeared back into the kitchen. There was silence for a few minutes, Harry idly looking out of the window while his friends talked. Harry figured today would be the day he received the silent treatment based on what Catherine had been telling him yesterday. She was probably even surprised that he showed up today.

"Out, out, out," Harry heard Mary say loudly from the kitchen, and a second later Hermione was forced out of the kitchen, pen and notepad still in hands.

"What do you want me to do?" Hermione called.

"Interact with the customers!" he heard Mary call back. "I can't have you clogging up my kitchen!"

Hermione glanced over at Harry's friends and, deciding a group of three was too intimidating, plopped down in front of Harry, her face set stubbornly. They were silent for several seconds, until Hermione said, "So...you came back."

In the back of Harry's mind, he heard his friends' conversation stop as they strained their own ears to hear this interaction. "Did you think I wasn't serious yesterday?" Harry inquired curiously. "I thought you could tell when I'm lying."

Hermione's cheeks were tinged pink as she said, "Well, conviction and determination can die off pretty quickly."

Harry grinned and leaned forward. "My conviction, determination, and stubbornness never die down," he said. "I'll be here every. Single. Day."

Hermione raised an eyebrow at him, clearly at a loss as to how to respond. Finally, after several seconds, she said, "You know, you won't be quite as handsome when you get fat from all of this food."

"If I could choose between being fat and eating this food or being skinny and not eating this food, I would rather be fat," Harry said. "Mary's cooking is delicious."

Hermione slowly shook her head. "You are one interesting person, Harry Potter," she said. "One second you're as serious as can be and the next you're making jokes."

Harry slowly nodded in response, pleased with how this conversation was going. Trying to catch her off guard, he then asked, "What are you going to do, Hermione?"

She blinked, surprised. "Well, I imagine I'm going to get your food as soon as it's ready."

Harry shook his head. "Not what I meant," he said. "I'm interested in what you're going to do in terms of school, since you're missing this year."

Her features instantly became guarded. "I'm making money right now," she said. "That's my plan."

Harry softly said, "You know, it's alright to admit you're having some trouble. You can talk to me if you need anything." The way she was looking at him at that moment said she would go to him last for advice. "Are you going to school next year?" he said to switch back to the main point.

She remained silent for a minute before finally saying, "If I make enough money this year."

"Where do you want to go?" he asked.

"Harvard," she said. "Harvard law school."

Harry grinned. "That seems oddly fitting for you," he said, drawing a small smile from her. She may not have liked to talk about her future, but he figured as long as he kept it light-hearted, they could continue like this. "I think that sounds like an excellent idea."

"Thanks," she said, a faint blush staining her cheeks a cute pink. "Everyone always seems to think the idea is stupid. I'm glad I've found somebody who agrees."

Harry frowned. "Really?" he said. "Weird."

Hermione took a deep breath, and Harry could tell she was getting ready to say something important. But at that second, the door opened and Mary came out with the food. She put one plate in front of Harry and another in front of Hermione, who made to protest. But Mary said, "Now Hermione, you do have to take a break at some point today."

Hermione frowned. "But it's not even halfway through the day," she said.

"Oh, hush," Mary replied, flashing Harry a quick smile. "I'm sure a customer who's here all alone will appreciate the company."

Hermione looked at Harry, who quickly nodded in agreement. "I most certainly would."

Mary gave them one last smile and went over to take Caitlyn, Marcus, and Catherine's orders. As they dug into their food, Hermione asked, "So, what about you? You said you're still in school? Do you know which university you want to attend?"

Harry scratched his head, trying to think how to best explain this to Hermione. "It's kind of hard to explain," Harry said. "But I'm basically attending a private school that combines high school and university."

Hermione looked impressed, leaving Harry to mentally let out a relieved sigh. "That's pretty impressive. I've never heard of anything like that. What's the place called?"

After a brief moment of hesitation, Harry said, "Hogwarts."

"Hogwarts?" Hermione asked, smiling. "What an odd name."

Harry raised his eyebrows in agreement. "They're very entrenched in secrecy and tradition, so let's pretend I didn't tell you that," he whispered to her conspiratorially.

Hermione nodded and asked, "So what do you plan to do after school then?"

Harry opened his mouth to tell her he would be going into law enforcement school, by which he meant, of course, Auror training. But something caught his tongue. He didn't know what it was, but he couldn't say it. Instead, he slowly said, "You know what? I really don't know what I want to do after school."

"Well, whatever you do, is it alright if I say I'll support you in return?" she asked.

Harry grinned at her. "I'll be counting on you," he said.

Hermione ended up finishing her food right as several more customers walked in. Hermione stood up and made to greet them, but Harry gently grabbed her wrist. Hermione turned around to look at him, confused, and he asked, "Do you want to do anything with me tonight?"

Hermione raised a skeptical eyebrow at him. "One day of pleasant conversation isn't enough to change my mind," she said. "Very much like yourself, I have a stubborn streak a mile long."

Hermione left Harry to greet the customers, and Harry sighed happily and reclined in the booth. "Of course," he mused to himself. "You wouldn't be Hermione if you were any other way."

Harry waited around to speak to Hermione more, but more and more customers showed up, leaving him no time to spend with her all the way up until his friends finished their food. Cursing his luck, Harry stood up and stretched as the other three left. He glanced around and noticed that Hermione was in the kitchen. He frowned and made to leave, but the kitchen door suddenly burst open. Harry glanced over her shoulder to find Mary standing in the doorway, Hermione focused on properly arranging a plate behind her.

Mary was holding a spare apron in her hand that she threw to Harry. "You want to talk to Hermione more, Harry?" she asked, and he nodded. "Be here at six am tomorrow and be ready to work."

After fully registering what Mary was implying, Harry grinned. "I'll be here," he said.

He left the shop to find only Caitlyn waiting outside for him. "Where are Catherine and your fiance?" he asked, looking around for them.

"I sent them on ahead so they could get to know each other properly," Caitlyn said, gesturing Harry to walk with her.

They walked in silence for a few minutes, Caitlyn obviously waiting for the proper moment to ask something that was bothering her. Finally, she bluntly asked, "Harry, does Teddy like me?"

Harry blanched. "Of course!" he said after a short pause. "I heard you have a similar relationship to the one you have with me. There can't be any reason why he wouldn't like you!" he chuckled weakly, poorly covering his farce.

Caitlyn stopped walking and stopped Harry with a hand to his arm. "Harry, be serious with me," she said softly. "Teddy...he has feeling for me, doesn't he?"

Harry sighed. "Yes, Cait," he said. "Teddy has feelings for you that are much greater than that of a brother and sister."

Caitlyn also sighed. "I was afraid you were going to say that," she said, continuing their walk at a slower pace.

"What are you going to do?" Harry asked. "I mean, you can't just leave him hanging for forever."

"I'm engaged, Harry, what am I supposed to do?" she asked.

Harry took a moment to think about that one. It was actually a pretty difficult question. "Well, I think you should go out on a walk with him tonight...when it gets dark."

Caitlyn looked at him inquisitively. "What good is that going to do?"

Harry shrugged. "Go out and take a walk with just the two of you. I don't know why, but I think that isn't a bad idea at all. Make sure you make the relationship you two have very clear."

Caitlyn sighed again. "This isn't going to be very fun, is it?" she asked quietly.

"No, Caitlyn," Harry said. "I suppose it isn't."

"Great," she huffed as they turned onto the street where the Black house was located. "When did all of this get so confusing?"

"Well," said Harry. "When we grew up, I suppose."

"Odd, isn't it?" Caitlyn asked in return. "When we're kids, we can't wait to become adults. But now that I'm an adult, I'd give anything to be a kid again."

Harry mulled over that thought as they approached the door to the house. As he opened it for Caitlyn, he said, "Well, if life always worked the way we wanted it to, it wouldn't be life, would it?"

As Harry closed the door behind them, he couldn't help but think that this would be the last moment of peace he would have before the storm. It was a good thing he knew how to batten down the hatches.

* * *

**A/N: I know, I know. 3 weeks for a somewhat filler chapter. I'm sorry T.T My muse decided to desert me for this chapter. Keep your eyes peeled for a quicker next chapter! (And yes, this time I'm making a promise!)**


	7. Moonlight Sonata

**Moonlight Sonata**

Harry awkwardly crouch-walked with Cat doing the same beside him, the invisibility cloak just barely managing to cover both of them as they tailed Caitlyn and Teddy. Harry hadn't wanted to follow or eavesdrop on the two, but when he caught Cat sneaking out with his invisibility cloak, he couldn't help but tag along once he discovered that it was impossible to stop her. Guilt made his stomach squirm as they followed the two, though the guilt was quickly being replaced by curiosity.

Finally, after over a minute of the two not saying anything, Caitlyn said, "I really like the night, Teddy. It's just so beautiful."

"I know that, silly," Teddy replied teasingly. "You only told me every time we would be playing outside at night as kids."

The two fell into another silence, this one a little more awkward than the last.

Finally, Teddy asked, "So what's the real reason for you wanting to take a walk with just me?"

Caitlyn shrugged and Harry immediately looked over at Catherine, who was frowning. Was she not going to remind him of their relationship as friends and nothing more? The two just kept walking, though, neither looking at each other or talking. The night grew colder as they did so, and Harry found his legs beginning to hurt from crouch-walking for so long. Catherine was shivering beside him, but there was nothing Harry could do for her that wouldn't expose their position.

Right when he was about to non-verbally suggest to Catherine that they head back to the house, Caitlyn stopped. Harry and Catherine did, too, though Teddy took two more steps before he realized his counterpart had stopped.

"Caitlyn?" Teddy said, confused. "What's wrong?"

Harry held his breath as she stood there and Catherine stopped shivering, then Caitlyn tooked two determined steps forward and grabbed Teddy's collar so she could go up onto her tiptoes and press her lips firmly against his.

Catherine gasped and Harry had to do his best not to as Teddy froze in shock, then immediately tore away from Caitlyn, pushing her to arms' length as he did so.

"What the hell was that, Caitlyn?" Teddy asked, appalled.

Caitlyn folded her arms over her chest and raised an eyebrow at Teddy. "Wasn't nearly as good as you thought it would be, was it?"

"Y-you're engaged!" Teddy cried, horrified. "You just kissed me! What about your fiance?"

"Don't dodge my question, Teddy," Caitlyn said. "Yes or no; was it as good as you thought it would be? And don't tell me it didn't feel right because I'm engaged."

Teddy was silent for a long while as Catherine and Harry waited with bated breaths for his answer. "It...It wasn't nearly as good as I thought it would be, Caitlyn," Teddy finally admitted.

"I know," Caitlyn replied. "I knew you would pull away from me, too." She stepped up to him and cupped his cheeks, smiling sadly at him. "Teddy, I love you, I really do, just not in the way you want me to. There was no love in the kiss I gave you - that's why it felt wrong."

Teddy sighed and let his eyes close, his breath curling into a faint mist in front of him as he did so. "I've had a crush on you for as long as I can remember, Cait," Teddy said. "I dreamed of you returning every day and what our reunion would be like. I...I was afraid of something like this happening, but not fully surprised by it." He grinned at her, tears making his eyes glisten. "You're an awesome woman, Caitlyn, and Marcus is lucky to have you."

"Teddy..." Caitlyn muttered, at a loss for words

Teddy chuckled. "You know, although I did have a crush on you, you're becoming an old woman," he said, and Caitlyn scoffed. "I can't have you cramping my style like that. I'm too young to be nagged at for doing the things I want to do."

"I don't nag!" Caitlyn said defensively.

Teddy laughed at that one as the two continued walking. They quieted down until they got back home, where Teddy stopped in front of the door and said, "I'll be fine, Caitlyn. There are plenty of women out there. I'm sure I'll fall in love again." He grinned. "You just make sure you're happy so I can be happy that you're happy, yeah?"

Caitlyn surprised Teddy by hugging him tightly. "You're a good guy, you know that Teddy?" she said.

Teddy sighed. "I'm not a good guy," he said quietly. "I was so wrapped up in my heartbreak over you last night that I...well, I said some things to Cat that I regret. I still have to properly apologize."

Caitlyn pulled back and smiled at Teddy. "The good thing about Cat is that she's like a younger version of me..." Harry grinned as Catherine very lightly scoffed at that "...and she'll be cool about it. I'm sure she understands what you were going through and has already forgiven you."

Caitlyn headed for the door, and when her hand was on the knob, she asked, "Speaking of which...how do you feel about Cat?"

Teddy blinked, confused, and Harry cringed. How he wished he could just reach over and cover her ears right now. He was incredibly tempted to do so despite the fact that all he'd be doing is delaying the inevitable. So he let her listen.

"What do you mean?" Teddy asked slowly.

Caitlyn shrugged. "Because you're slow on the uptake, I'll tell you right now that she's interested in you."

Not good. "How can you tell?" Teddy asked. "Did she tell you?"

Caitlyn laughed. "I'm her older sister. I can always tell what she's thinking. She likes you, Teddy."

Teddy frowned. "Well...I've never really thought about it, to be honest."

Catherine's shoulders dropped a little, and Caitlyn opened the door. "Well, maybe you should give it some thought before it's too late. She's cute, you know?"

And with that, Caitlyn went outside, leaving the invisible Harry and Catherine alone with Teddy. The two under the invisibility cloak sneaked past Teddy, who was still standing outside brooding, and made it a safe distance away before apparating up into the guest room.

Catherine tore the cloak from over their heads and threw it angrily into the corner of the room, then immediately made a beeline for the door, anger making her magic crackle audibly.

Harry jumped in front of her and blocked the door with his body before she could do anything rash. "What are you doing, Cat?" he asked, though he full well knew the answer.

"I'm going to kill my sister," she replied, her cheeks an angry red.

"I'm sure if you waited a few minutes to cool off you would realize that you love your sister very much and don't want to do anything to hurt her," Harry said in a very sad attempt at humor.

"How could she tell him how I feel about him?!" Cat demanded, her magic blasting out and knocking over Harry's bedside table.

Harry swallowed hard. She was getting pretty scary. "Now now," he said nervously, trying to think of what to say. "We can't let Caitlyn know we were following them!"

Cat marched up to Harry and snarled at him. "Just try to stop me," she said.

He grabbed her shoulders right as she apparated, disorienting him as they were instantly transported onto a soft floor in a heap.

"Er..." Harry heard from above them, and looked up to see Caitlyn looking down at the two of them with a confused look on her face. "What are you two doing?"

Harry stood up and saw that they were undoubtedly in Caitlyn's room, which was painted navy blue and decorated with various quidditch paraphernalia, including several plaques from the Gryffindor quidditch team and an Appleby Arrows poster.

Just as Harry was about to comment on Caitlyn's choice of decoration, a resounding slap rang throughout the room as Catherine struck her sister, her entire body shaking in rage. Harry just barely managed to cast a silencing ward around the room as Catherine exploded, yelling about how Caitlyn cheated on her fiance and lost her trust for telling Teddy her feelings.

Caitlyn rubbed her cheek the entire time, not really paying much attention to her younger sister's rant. When Catherine's need to breathe overwhelmed her need to yell at her sister, Caitlyn cleared her throat and said, "The slap was much deserved, Cat, I'll give you that. Also, I knew you would be following us, but I never would have imagined Harry being under the invisibility cloak with you."

Harry half-smiled at her apologetically. "I had to make sure she didn't do anything stupid?" he trailed off, turning the statement into a weak question.

Caitlyn laughed and sat on her bed, which infuriated Catherine even more. "And I didn't cheat on Marcus," she said. "I told him what I was going to do beforehand and he said he didn't mind."

Catherine deflated a little.

Caitlyn raised a skeptical eyebrow at her sister. "And are you really that angry at me for telling Teddy your secret?" she asked. "All I did was speed up whatever is going to happen between you two. Believe me, it would have taken years for him to finally notice that you were smitten, sis. You should be thanking me."

Catherine sighed. "I guess I'm not that angry after all," she grumbled as she sat down next to her sister. "But there's no way in hell I'm going to thank you."

Caitlyn shrugged. "Wasn't really expecting you to, Cat," she said. "Once Teddy gets back on his feet, I'm sure he'll take notice of you. Just make sure you're there for him."

Catherine blushed, and Harry continued to stand there feeling horribly awkward. "I'm not a little kid," she said. "I know how to make Teddy mine. It was going along fine until you and your fiance showed up out of the blue."

Caitlyn pouted. "Don't pretend like you aren't happy to see me, Cat," she said, hugging her sister. "I really missed you."

Catherine sighed. "I missed you too," she admitted grudgingly.

Harry sighed and shook his head. "You two are weird."

* * *

"How did the walk go?" Harry asked, wanting Teddy's take on what transpired.

Teddy smiled and shrugged. "Pretty much how I expected it to, to be honest," he admitted. "She had already figured out that I liked her and put me down gently." He sighed, then glanced at Harry out of the corner of his eye. He debated internally, then whispered, "She also told me Cat is interested in me. Is that true?"

Harry frowned, having rehearsed his answering knowing that Teddy was going to ask him. "She hasn't told me anything," he said. "And I'm new here; I don't really know her normal behavior to compare."

Teddy nodded quickly. "I thought not," he said, still nodding. "This is a lot at once, you know?"

Harry nodded in response. "I know exactly what you're talking about," he said, though in reference to everything he was dealing with. He slid into his bed and stared at the ceiling as Teddy finished getting ready.

He did so silently and turned off the light, plunging the two into darkness. After several minutes, Teddy finally said, "I don't like her, Harry. At least, not in the way she likes me."

Harry sighed, his fears confirmed. This just got worse and worse. "I don't know what to tell you to do about it," he said. "If you tell her you don't like her, she'll wonder how you know. If you don't tell her...she might have her hopes up or something." Then Harry chuckled. "And look at you, man. Your main problem right now revolves around a girl liking you. My main problem revolves around me not being liked. You have it easy, I think."

Teddy made a thoughtful noise, then said, "I don't think so. You can make Hermione fall for you, but I don't want my friendship with Cat ruined and it's not like I'm just going to fall in love with her out of the blue."

With that, the two fell into silence, each preoccupied by their own thoughts, and then, slowly, Harry fell asleep.

* * *

"Mother of Merlin," Harry grumbled as he fumbled for his alarm clock, blearily opening his eyes to see that it was five in the morning. "Why am I up so early?"

He rolled out of bed and grabbed his glasses off of the bedside table, putting them on his face as he shuffled across the hall to the bathroom. Once he had been in the shower for a few minutes, he finally remembered why he was up so early. He had a job he had to get to!

After his shower he took a little extra care in making sure his hair wasn't sticking out crazily, then headed downstairs for a quick bowl of cereal before donning his jacket and heading for the door, apron in hand. He remembered that his wand was in his back pocket as per habit, pulled it out, took one look at it, and left it on the key rack/shelf combo next to the door before heading out.

He enjoyed the cool, rising sun as he walked to work, a spring in his step. Not only was he eager to spend the day with Hermione, he was going to be able to help out Mary, who seemed to be the person closest to Hermione in this universe.

He arrived fifteen minutes early and knocked on the door, and there was a smile on Mary's face as she let him in. "You passed my first test," she said happily. "I was afraid you would be a teenager who didn't have it in you to wake up so early!"

Harry smiled. "Wouldn't be very wise of me to lose your trust now, would it?" he said.

Mary ushered Harry back to the kitchen as she said, "And you've got a brain under that messy hair of yours," she said. "I like that."

Harry frowned a little and skimmed his hand over his hair, not really surprised to find that it had managed to become a little bit of a mess since he had tried to tame it.

"You're going to be my second cook, Harry," Mary said casually as she checked the heat on the multiple ovens. "Do you know how to cook or am I going to have to teach you from the beginning? Because I really could have you in ship shape by the time the cafe opens, you know."

Harry laughed. "I don't doubt it," he said. "Luckily, however, I _do_know how to cook and will do my best in helping you today."

"Good," said Mary. "Nothing we cook is really too difficult or different from the norm, so I don't think you should have many issues. Just make sure to cook safely and tell me if you think you can't cook something properly. I'd rather coach you the first time rather than having you muck it up and leave me to quickly cook something for the customer. Sound good?"

Right as Harry was about to say 'yes,' the kitchen door opened and Harry glanced over to see that Hermione was standing in the doorway, a look of disbelief on her face.

"What the...?" was all she could manage.

"Good news, Hermione," Mary said cheerily. "Harry's agreed to help us out around here!"

Hermione frowned. "Do we really need any help? Plus, how do you even know he's going to be any help? This is just you being nosy, isn't it?"

Mary opened her mouth to respond, but Harry cut her off. "If you have a problem with me, Hermione, don't take it out on Mary. And before you judge, why don't you wait and I'll make you something that proves I deserve to be here. I know in that logical brain of yours that you were taught not to judge people so easily, especially on assumptions."

Harry swore he saw Hermione's eye twitch, then she took a deep breath and said, "Fine." She looked over at Mary. "If I don't like his cooking, he's gone."

Mary glanced over at Harry, who nodded almost imperceptibly. Then she looked back at Hermione and confidently puffed her chest out. "Deal," she said, taking Hermione by surprise.

"That's...great," she said, still surprised. She blinked at Harry. "Cook me a normal, traditional breakfast then. I'm starving."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell me you weren't taught any manners either, Hermione," he said teasingly, causing Hermione to blush.

"Will you please make me breakfast?" she asked politely.

"Gladly," he said.

As soon as Hermione left the kitchen, Mary turned to Harry and muttered under her breath, "Can you really cook?"

Harry shot her a grin. "I'm not one to lie, Mary."

Mary sighed in relief. "Well, best of luck to you, kid. Hermione's going to be extra critical for you."

Harry nodded and set to work as Mary continued setting up the kitchen for the day, trying to sneakily peek at what Harry was doing and failing miserably. Harry could tell she wanted to critique him on what he was doing, but knew Harry would see that as violating Hermione's terms.

Harry had to roll up the long-sleeve shirt he was wearing and was constantly pushing his glasses up his sweaty nose as the heat of the ovens began getting to him. Mary took notice of this and said, "Ah, yes. Make sure to dress a little lighter tomorrow. It gets a bit toasty back here," she said in reference to his long-sleeve shirt and jeans.

Harry nodded as he put the finishing touches on the food, a mixture of excitement and nervousness making his body tingle as he looked down at the food. He knew he hadn't made any mistakes, so he just had to wait for Hermione's verdict.

He carefully picked up the plates and walked out of the kitchen, and Hermione looked up at him from their usual table. Well, after two days he didn't know if he could call it their 'usual table,' but that was really the only way to describe it now.

He set the food in front of her and went to head back to the kitchen, not knowing what else to do without it being awkward, but Hermione commanded, "Wait." Harry stopped. "Sit."

Harry complied, nervously wiping his hands on his apron as he sat across from her. Only the Dursleys had ever tasted his cooking. Not only had nobody he had ever cared for tasted his cooking, but the first person he cared about to taste his cooking was going to be the woman he loved!

She took her fork and stabbed one of the pancakes, shoveling a bit of hash brown on it as she did so.

Harry couldn't help the small smile that made its way on his face. _Interesting._

She ate the food carefully, Harry nervously watching on as Hermione's face gave away nothing. Harry waited with bated breath as Hermione finished the food and licked her lips, frowning at Harry afterwards.

When he couldn't take it anymore, Harry asked, "Well?"

"Well..." Hermione said, drawing out the suspense, before smiling brilliantly and saying, "I think it was delicious. I look forward to working with you." Harry felt relief course through his body as Hermione continued. "Do you cook anything besides breakfast?"

Harry grinned. "What if I told you I'm very capable of cooking food items that aren't considered breakfast?" he asked, arching an eyebrow.

Hermione blushed. "I'd say that's very good for you, Harry," she said. "You'll make a good boyfriend for a girl someday."

"I might make a good boyfriend for you...is that what you wanted to say?" he asked in return.

The blush turned into a full-on flush. "No," she said defensively, and her eyes narrowed. "What I wanted to say was that you should stop hitting on someone who doesn't appreciate it and go help Mary in the kitchen."

Harry sighed, wishing he could take back what he had said. He should have known this was going to happen. He wasn't going to stand for this any longer, though. "Come on, Hermione," Harry said, and Hermione's eyes narrowed further. "Why can't you just trust me?"

Hermione laughed disbelievingly. "You've already admitted that you're currently lying to me," she said. "That gives me a perfect reason to not trust you."

Harry took in a deep breath. "Look, Hermione, we both know I'm lying...by _omission_...to you. I promise you I'll tell you the truth eventually, I just can't do it right now. I _will_tell you. I promise," he said.

"Is that all men do?" Hermione asked in a whisper, and Harry was surprised to find tears in her eyes as she glared at him. She stood up and said louder. "Is that all men do?" she demanded. "Do you all make promises that you never keep? Do you all think it's some sort of game?" she shouted. Harry stood up too, surprised. "Do you think you can promise whatever you want? All you do is lie!"

Hermione took a deep, much-needed breath so she could yell some more, but stopped when Harry wrapped his arms around her, hugging her tightly. "I don't know what's happened to you in the past," Harry said quietly. "I don't know why you can't trust men." Harry was surprised that Hermione hadn't tried to push him off yet - all she was doing was crying into his shoulder. "But I'm going to tell you this, Hermione. I'll never break a promise I make," he said, fiery determination lacing his words. "_Never_."

Harry noticed movement out of the corner of his eye and saw Mary standing in the kitchen doorway, looking at him sadly. She nodded once to him, turned back around, and went back into the kitchen, leaving the two teenagers alone.

Harry's attention was jostled back to Hermione as she wrapped one tentative arm around him. "My father," she began quietly, and let out a sad, tear-filled laugh. "He was the best father ever. He taught me how to tie my shoes, taught me how to read, and taught me how to ride a bike. He promised me...he promised me he'd always love me. He promised me he'd be there when I graduated high school and college, and promised me he'd be there on my wedding day." Hermione's hand tightened on the back of Harry' shirt.

"What happened?" he quietly asked, trying to give her some of his courage so she could go on.

"When I was thirteen, my mother died," she quietly said.

"But Mary said she hopes to be a better mother than your mother," Harry said, confused. "Was she a bad mother?"

Hermione swallowed hard, and Harry heard her take in a few shaky breaths. "You're the first person I've told about my mother dying, Harry," she admitted, lighting a warm flame in Harry's heart and making his hold on her just a little tighter. "Mary thinks she abandoned me." She took a deep breath and said, "My mother died on her way to my school to pick me up. It was only a drive of three blocks, but an idiot driver blew through a stop and T-boned her." Hermione paused again to lick her lips, her head still on Harry's shoulder. "On that day, my father, the closest person to me, my last friend on the face of this earth, changed. He discovered his solace in alcohol...and in his drunken haze, decided that it was m-my fault mum died. And I don't know why, but that drunken decision even carried through and stuck when he wasn't drunk. He would beat me. Call me names. Break my fingers. He broke a couple of my ribs and my left arm. He wouldn't feed me." Harry had stopped breathing by this point. "I managed to stave off the beatings for the past few months, then ran away three weeks ago. I just couldn't do it anymore. I...I tried everything to get him to see that it wasn't my fault she died...that life just works this way sometimes. I tried to help him."

Harry could see a thirteen-year-old Hermione crying after the death of her mother and going up to her father to try to console him. To comfort him. To have someone to hold while she cried. And he could see her father beating her - punching her, kicking her.

Harry, a fire burning in his eyes, held Hermione tighter. "I'm going to kill him," he growled, hands itching for his wand. Oh, how he wished he had it at that moment.

"Why would you kill someone I love?" Hermione asked quietly, though it sounded as though she already knew the answer.

Harry blanched. "How can you still love him after what he did?" he asked, outraged, fiery anger pumping through his veins.

Hermione sighed. "He's still my father, Harry," she said. "I know the dad I love is still in there. I only left because I thought he needed some time alone. I never planned to leave him for good."

Harry gritted his teeth together to keep from saying what he really wanted to say.

"You can hold him while I hit him," Hermione said quietly. "He does deserve one little slap, at the very least."

Harry didn't know why, but he found the image of Hermione slapping her dad funny. A sad chuckle escaped his lips as his anger left him, to be replaced by nothing but sorrow for Hermione.

He pushed Hermione back to arm's length, held her there, and said, "I'm not your father, Hermione. I'm not like your father. I don't break promises. I don't strike women. I know you love him, but could you find yourself ever trusting someone who isn't like him?" he asked.

Hermione casted her eyes down. "I want to trust you, Harry, I really do. I think you're really handsome and interesting, and I really am flattered that you think highly enough of me to ask me out, but...but I'm just not ready. I'm sorry," she finished in a whisper.

Harry stared at her for a long moment, then took a step up to her and tilted her chin up with a finger. He grinned at her and said, "I'll tell you what. I'm going to make a promise." Hermione swallowed, her eyes not leaving his. "I'll wait for you, and I'll be here for you for whatever you need during the time I'm waiting for you."

"Harry," she said, her eyes widening a little.

Harry laughed. "You're worth waiting for, Hermione. Take your time. And if you ever need anything, make sure you come to me," he said.

Hermione nodded, and Harry, now a little embarrassed, turned and headed to the kitchen.

Then, remembering something, turned to Hermione and smiled. "And thanks for trusting me enough to share your story with me," he said.

"Will I get to hear yours?" Hermione asked, frowning. "I mean, you got to hear mine after all."

Harry took a deep breath. "I'll tell you when the time is right," he said.

"Is that what you're lying about?" she asked immediately, sharp as ever.

Harry did nothing but laugh and go into the kitchen, leaving Hermione standing alone in the dining area, the rising sun throwing rays off the walls of the cafe, illuminating her in warm glow.

And, in the warm glow of the sun, Hermione smiled softly at Harry's retreating form.

**A/N: This was certainly a challenging chapter to crank out! I really enjoyed writing it, especially the second half, and now that school has started up again I hope to get the chapters out quicker (since I outline during class!).**

**Thank you very much for reading!**


	8. The Lightning Strike

**The Lightning Strike**

Harry stopped cooking for a moment and grabbed the hand towel he had decided to use to keep his face sweat-free out of his back pocket. As soon as he got back to cooking, Hermione came into the kitchen and picked up the pancakes Harry had just finished cooking, smiling as she did so.

After she left the kitchen, Mary lightly said, "She's smitten."

Harry was still smiling at the kitchen door, glad things had been much less awkward and distant in the couple weeks following Hermione pouring her heart out to Harry. "Yeah?" he said somewhat distractedly.

Mary laid her hand on Harry's shoulder, also looking at the door. "I think you're on the right track, Harry. You just need to wait a little."

Harry and Mary got back to work as Harry said, "You really think so?" And just as he said that something hit him.

It was Hermione's birthday the next day.

Realizing he couldn't say this aloud, he turned to Mary and asked, "Hey, when's Hermione's birthday?"

Mary gasped, her eyes going wide. "Oh my gosh, I totally forgot to let you know! Her birthday is tomorrow!"

Harry, feigning surprise as best he could, said, "Tomorrow?!"

Mary, visibly angry with herself, said, "I should have told you sooner."

"Nevermind that," Harry said soothingly. "We have a party to plan."

Mary nodded determinedly, an eager smile on her face. "I'll close the cafe for tomorrow. Don't want to have Hermione working on her birthday."

Harry made a thoughtful noise as he twiddled a spatula between his fingers. "Where does Hermione live?" he asked, thinking that if he knew where she lived they could plan this out better.

Mary looked at Harry oddly, confusing him until she said, "I thought Hermione had already told you. She lives above the cafe with me in my spare room."

"Hmmm..." Harry said, thinking of what they could to make tomorrow special. That idea wasn't aided by the fact that Harry had to think of a good present idea by the next day on top of everything else.

At that moment, Mary quietly admitted, "I haven't bought her a present yet."

Harry laughed out loud. "Welcome to the club," he said.

As the two fell into silence while thinking, Harry couldn't help but think about the importance of this birthday for Hermione. She probably hadn't had a real birthday in a couple years, and it was up to Harry and Mary to ensure that she would begin to associate her birthday with good rather than bad. This would be a very important day, and it was up to Harry and Mary to plan it in one afternoon and not muck it up.

Mary suddenly had a stroke of inspiration. "How about we get together after closing to shop and plan? We both need to pick up presents after all, and..." she grinned conspiratorially at Harry, "...I'd like to get to know the man who's going to be dating Hermione a bit better."

Harry shrugged. "Sounds good to me," he said.

He wouldn't tell Mary this, but the fact that she liked him so much and her confidence in the idea that he'd soon be dating Hermione gave him a lot of confidence. He wouldn't have given up on Hermione no matter what, but Mary's help certainly played a part in his confidence being so high.

"Good," Mary said happily. "So where should we meet?" she asked.

Harry thought about it for a second, then sheepily scratched the back of his neck as a realization hit him. "I'm actually not from around here," Harry admitted. "I don't know where anything is."

Mary looked surprised for a moment, then said, "Well, there's a shopping center a couple blocks from here. Do you want the address or would you rather just ride in my car with me?"

Harry laughed. "Believe me, you don't want to be stuck in a car with me before I've showered after getting off work."

Mary laughed at that and grabbed a piece of paper, then wrote down an address and a phone number. "I think it'll be good if you have my phone number in case something comes up now or in the future."

Harry couldn't help but agree.

o.O.o.O.o.O.o

"See you tomorrow!" Harry called over his shoulder as he left the shop, receiving goodbyes from his co-workers in return.

He lamented the fact that he didn't have a bank account yet in the muggle world, meaning he couldn't cash the single check he had received for working at the cafe. He needed money if he wanted to buy Hermione a birthday present though, and he knew there was only one place he was going to get it.

So he ran out behind the cafe, closed his eyes, and turned on the spot, the terrible feeling of apparation squeezing the breath from his lungs. Just when he couldn't take it anymore, he opened his eyes and found himself in front of a modest house with a rosewood door, glad to find that his entire body had made the trip.

He knocked on the door nervously, hoping this would go well. Honestly, he didn't know how he was going to ask for money with a straight face.

The door opened to reveal Lily Potter, a smile on her face. She hugged Harry and said, "You've been out of school this whole time and you haven't come to see me? I'm glad I have the day off from work!"

Lily ushered Harry inside, and he ended up sitting in the living room while she went into the kitchen to make some tea. Deciding it was useless to worry about whether or not he would get the money, he took to looking around his home. There were quite a few pictures of him, bolstering his confidence, and there was also a muggle television, which Harry found interesting. There was a broom mounted above the fireplace; the significance that the broom held, Harry did not know. There were a couple books on the table and a half-eaten sandwich, both of which Harry assumed were his mother's. At least she was having an enjoyable day off of work.

After several minutes, Lily came back with tea and biscuits. She gave Harry his tea and set the plate of biscuits on the table, one of which Harry gratefully took. He hadn't eaten at work that day.

"So how does the mission for Dumbledore go?" Lily asked, taking a seat on the opposite couch. "Are you learning a lot?"

A small smile made its way onto Harry's face as he thought about Hermione. "Yeah, I've learned a lot," he said.

"What kinds of things are you learning?" Lily asked interestedly.

Harry thought about it for a second. "It's not so much magical learning, but learning about the world, people, and myself," he said. "Dumbledore thought I had learned as much as the school could teach me."

"And how is the mission going?" Lily asked.

Seeing a golden opportunity for a segue, Harry said, "Well, even though this isn't really related to the mission, I am in a bit of a tight spot and I came to you for help."

"With what?" Lily asked.

Harry cleared his throat. He had never asked for money before, and quite frankly, it was a bit embarrassing. "Well, I...er...I need a bit of money."

Lily blinked, surprised. "I can hardly imagine Dumbledore would assign a student something that requires money."

Harry sighed, unable to outright lie to his mother. "This isn't for the assignment," he said. "It's...well, it's for a girl."

Lily's eyes lit up like a child's on christmas morning. She excitedly leaned forward and asked, "Are you two going on a date? What's her name? Is she pretty? Will I get to meet her?" She gasped as a thought hit her. "Is it Cat?"

"It isn't Cat," Harry said, a smile on his face. "This girl is a muggle named Hermione Granger, and it's her birthday tomorrow. We're not going out yet, though she is very beautiful and insanely smart. I imagine you'll get to meet her and get along with her if things go well."

Lily continued to question Harry about Hermione for a while longer, warming Harry's heart as he realized he was bonding with his mother. He never dreamed he would be able to talk to her about things like girls and love, and he never knew something so simple would make him feel so good and loved.

Eventually, Harry left the house on Godric's Hollow with a full stomach, £120, and a warm heart. He apparated to the mall with a spring in his step and made his way to the front, where he found Mary already waiting, a book in her hands. So that was why she and Hermione got along so well.

Harry realized that not only was this a chance for Mary to get to know him better, but also a chance for him to get to know Mary better.

"Sorry," said Harry, and Mary closed her book, a smile on her face. "I got held up for a minute. We ready to go in?"

She nodded and led the way, Harry tailing her through the largest mall he had ever seen. They passed quite a few clothes stores, which Harry knew might have appealed to people like Lavender and Parvati, but knew it was definitely not the store to shop in for Hermione. There were also video game stores, jewelry stores, food stands, and a lot of people. And as Harry marveled at all these sights, he realized that he had never been to a muggle shopping mall before. Diagon Alley, which was the largest wizarding shopping center Harry knew of, definitely had a different vibe than a place like the mall, which was playing soothing music and was indoors. He wondered if his parents had ever taken him to the mall, then decided that it didn't really matter.

What mattered right now was finding the perfect gift for Hermione.

How long the two of them walked, Harry didn't know. They stopped at many stores and looked at what they had to offer, but grew increasingly frustrated as they came up empty-handed again and again.

"Hermione's surprisingly difficult to shop for," Harry muttered as they walked through the mall. He knew Mary didn't want to admit it, but her silence was more than Harry needed to confirm her agreement.

The day slowly turned into night, and just when the two of them were going to call it quits and try a new shopping center, Harry caught something in the corner of his eye. It was in a window display, and without taking his eyes off of it, Harry grabbed Mary's wrist and pulled her to the store with him.

Hermione would love it.

o.O.o.O.o.O.o

"Hurry up!" Mary whispered as she hurriedly rushed around the cafe, setting everything up for Hermione's birthday as the sound of Hermione's alarm clock faintly reached their ears. Mary had pushed all but one of the tables up against the booths hugging the walls. Frankly, Harry thought it was pointless to tell him to hurry considering the fact that the scraping of the tables against the floor was loud enough to wake the dead.

"There's nothing to hurry up," Harry said as the shower turned on above their heads. "I set the cake to bake and be ready by the time Hermione usually wakes up, not twenty minutes before that."

Mary sighed, frustrated. The heat the oven was letting off plus the heat caused by the exertion of pushing the tables around seemed to have made her a little irritable. "You have to have it hidden away in the fridge by the time she gets down here or this will all be for naught," she explained for the tenth time that morning.

The two of them had arrived at work about an hour in advance to set everything up for Hermione's surprise party. Technically the party wasn't supposed to start until nighttime, but the surprise had to start when she first woke up, since she lived in the place.

"You have enough money for everything today, right?" Mary asked again, to which Harry internally rolled his eyes. She was definitely a mother at heart even though she had only been doing it for about a month.

"Yes, yes," Harry said, patting his pocket surreptitiously despite his confidence. He definitely had the money. "Everything is ready but the cake."

Mary sighed. "If it comes down to it, I'll stall her for as long as I can."

Harry was glad Mary was willing to go that far, but was equally as glad when Hermione was staying in the shower for much longer than normal. Mary having to stall her would have been much more stressful than what he ended up doing, which was pulling the cake out of the oven, covering it with tinfoil, and putting it in the back of the fridge before Hermione was out of the shower.

Mary quickly turned the lights off and the two of them hid in the kitchen. Harry was nervous about how Hermione would take this, and could feel his heart thumping against his ribcage. The pressure was on, and he knew exactly why. This all had to be perfect.

Eventually, the sound of Hermione making her way down the stairs reached their ears, and Harry and Mary looked at each other and nodded. Hermione opened the door separating the two floors and they heard her hesitate, confused as to why the lights weren't on.

"Mary?" Hermione said, unsure. "Harry?"

The two of them heard her footsteps approach the kitchen, and the door opened slowly, unsurely. Harry, whose hand was resting on the light switch, turned on the lights and the two of them jumped up.

"Surprise!" they said in unison, making Hermione jump. "Happy birthday!"

Hermione smiled brilliantly, but said, "Thanks, guys. But you didn't have to do all this."

Harry nonchalantly said, "Of course we didn't have to do it. We did it because we wanted to."

Mary nodded her agreement. "You deserve all this."

A faint blush tinted Hermione's cheeks. "Well...thanks," she said, a cute smile on her face. "It really means a lot to me."

That, more than anything, made it worth it to Harry.

"We're closing the cafe for today, since today is an official holiday in the eyes of Mary Lockhart," Mary said proudly. Then she grinned, meeting Harry's eyes surreptitiously. "Unfortunately, however, a day off is just what I really need to take care of the financial side of the cafe, so I'll be upstairs for a few hours, but once I'm done with that I'll be ready to party." She tossed her keys to Hermione. "Have fun, you two!"

Before either of them could say anything, Mary was out of the room and headed upstairs. Hermione and Harry looked at each other, Hermione a tiny bit confused, then Harry said, "Shall we go out then?"

Hermione nodded. "But let me get changed first," she said in reference to her work clothes.

As she went upstairs to change, Harry couldn't help but think that the work uniform, with its somewhat short skirt, looked fine on Hermione. What she came down in was just as good though, the t-shirt and jeans hugging her frame.

She smiled at Harry, making his heart skip a beat, and said, "Ready?"

Harry nodded and the two of them headed out to the car, where Hermione said, "Where should we go?"

And Harry had to give Hermione the same answer he had given Mary the day previously, so it was up to her to choose. "Plus, it's your birthday," he added. "I want to go wherever you want to go." Plus, Harry could tell she already had somewhere in mind.

Even though it seemed Hermione had been eager to head out, partway through the ride she grew unnaturally somber. One second she had been a bundle of energy, then she just deflated. They ended up at the mall, which turned out to be closed, which really wasn't odd considering it was only six in the morning.

"You alright there, Hermione?" Harry asked, and looked over to find Hermione looking at the mall with her eyebrows furrowed.

"Fine," she said calmly after a minute, her eyes finally focusing on Harry. He was surprised she had even heard him. "I forgot it was so early in the morning."

After it became apparent that Hermione was waiting for him to say something, Harry suggested, "How about we go get some breakfast? We can come back here when it's open."

Twenty minutes later, the two of them were sitting in a cafe next to the mall, and, quite frankly, the food didn't even compare to Mary's. Breakfast passed by in near-silence, which Harry would have been depressed about had Hermione not been picking at her food with such depression. So Harry did his best to be happy. He had to make Hermione's birthday happy, after all.

It became quickly apparent that this task was going to be harder than Harry ever thought it could be, the silence growing thicker as the two of them walked through the mall and went into the bookstore, where Hermione barely even looked at any of the books. He knew how much she would have loved to have been here any other day, and to see her looking so depressed at a bookstore made Harry's stomach churn unpleasantly.

After walking through the mall, Hermione decided she wanted to see a movie, so they headed over to the cinema. They ended up in some cheesy action film that Hermione barely even watched, and at the end of it she continued to look at the blank screen, she was so lost in thought.

Quite frankly, Harry had had enough. Luckily, he knew exactly what the problem is.

"That's it," Harry said, and Hermione glanced over at him. "We're going to go see your dad."

Hermione immediately became defensive, narrowing her eyes at Harry angrily. "I've been telling you all day that I'm fine," she said coldly.

Harry scoffed. "No you're not," he said. "You think you're the only one who can see through lies? You haven't been yourself all day, and I sure as hell don't want Mary seeing you like this on your birthday."

Hermione's anger melted away to be replaced by vulnerability. "I'm scared," she admitted quietly.

Harry grabbed her shoulder and looked into her eyes seriously. "I'll be right by your side," he said.

Hermione searched his eyes for a few seconds longer, then finally nodded her assent.

As they drove to Hermione's former house, Harry noticed that her knuckles grew more and more white as she gripped the steering wheel with increasing strength. He would have told her to relax, but he knew that would only serve in making her even more tense and nervous. She also became more immersed in her own thoughts and worries as they drew closer to her house, which was beginning to set Harry on edge.

Finally, the car pulled up to Hermione's former house, and Harry felt his stomach begin to knot in anticipation. As they walked up to the door, Harry reflected on his only worry, which was that he was afraid he would be unable to restrain himself. He knew Hermione still loved her father, but there was nothing more Harry wanted to do at that moment but go to work on the older man as soon as he opened the door and showed his cowardly face.

Hermione nervously knocked on the door, her nervous breathing setting Harry's protective senses into overgear. She was seriously scared to see her father again, not that Harry blamed her. It was sad, really, considering how much it took to make Hermione scared. After all, she stuck with him the entire time they were attempting to rid the world of one of the most evil dark wizards of all time.

Mr. Granger eventually answered the door, a sneer adorning his face as soon as he saw it was his daughter who had knocked. The first thing that hit Harry was the overpowering smell of alcohol. Harry had no idea how he had gotten through a work day as a dentist with as drunk as he was, since he was sure the work clothes he was wearing were imbued with the rancid, overwhelming smell.

"What are you doing showing your face around her again?" Mr. Granger asked unpleasantly. "I thought you were gone for good."

Harry was impressed with how little his words seemed to affect Hermione's approach. She stood her ground, still deferring to her father, and said, "I was just dropping by to see how you've been doing.

Mr. Granger completely ignored Hermione, instead turning his sneer on Harry. "Boyfriend?" he says incredulously, the sneer turning into a twisted grin as he looked back at his daughter. "How much did you have to pay him to come with you?"

Harry's jaw clenched as the urge to jump the bastard threatened to take control of his body. Oh, how he wanted to shut him up with his fist.

"Dad," Hermione said softly, imploringly. Harry knew the only reason she could still talk to him like that at the moment was because she was used to him acting like this around her. This, more than anything else, saddened Harry. "Do you really think this is the person mum wanted you to become?"

Mr. Granger let out a derisive laugh. "I'll never know what she would have wanted, since she's dead." He pointed an accusing finger at Hermione's face. "And how dare _you_, of all people, ask what your mother would want.

He raised his hand for a backhanded slap, a snarl on his face, but Harry quickly reached out and caught his wrist mid-swing. Mr. Granger looked at Harry incredulously.

Harry gruffly said, "You can insult me all you like and even try to demoralize Hermione all you like - I know she's strong enough to handle that - but if you even _think_about physically assaulting her one more time, I promise you now you'll find yourself on the ground without the power to move even a single limb."

"Oh yeah?" Mr. Granger said, rising up to his full height. Not that it scared Harry much, of course, though nothing really could scare him after he had dealt with Voldemort.

"Please don't fight," Hermione said, close to tears. "Can't we just calm down and talk?"

As Harry released Mr. Granger's hand and looked over at Hermione, he couldn't help but think that she was a little too stubborn for her own good. In fact...

"Hermione, he just tried to-"

He was cut off as Hermione's eyes went wide in horror, and Harry glanced over just in time to take the punch thrown by Mr. Granger right in the mouth. Blood filled Harry's mouth as he stumbled backwards and fell off of the top step of the three stairs leading up to Hermione's house, landing flat on his back on the sidewalk below.

"Harry!" he heard Hermione cry in shock and worry as he crawled onto his hands and knees, the world spinning as he spit a mouthful of blood on the ground. It seemed that Mr. Granger had sliced open the inside of his lip with that punch.

He groaned as Hermione helped him up, then stood up at full height while rubbing his jaw. He glared up at Mr. Granger, his bloodlust rising even more. "You're lucky Hermione told us not to fight," he said, his voice laced with power.

Mr. Granger was either too drunk or too stupid to feel the raw power flowing from Harry, not that Harry really cared which was the reason. He said, "With the way you took that punch, I don't think there's too much I have to be worried about."

Harry spit out another mouthful of blood, and the only thing keeping him from jumping the older man was Hermione's hand on his arm. He used all of his willpower to stay silent, telling himself that it only mattered in his head that he knew he could beat this old guy in a fight. He had learned to tell the difference between tough people and those who only acted tough to know that he could take on Mr. Granger.

Speaking of Mr. Granger. "Now you, you little piece of trash, take your piece of trash boyfriend with you and get off my property. I don't need you disrupting my peaceful life with your idiocy," he said.

"Dad," Hermione said sadly as he retreated back into his house.

Mr. Granger couldn't leave it at that, though. "And never come here again if you know what's good for you. I have enough bullcrap to deal with in my everyday life without having to look at you pitiful excuse of a human being."

Hermione winced as her father slammed his front door shut, then sighed. Harry could tell she was disappointed, tears filling her eyes as she stared at the door.

So much for making her birthday perfect.

"Let's go, Hermione," Harry said, putting a comforting arm around her shoulders and turning her around.

She followed reluctantly, then suddenly stopped, making Harry stop. "Hermione?" he asked, wincing at the pain in his jaw.

"Are you okay?" she asked, looking at his jaw with worried eyes.

"I'm fine," Harry replied nonchalantly. "It's just a little cut in my mouth."

"I can't believe my dad hit you," she said. "I'm so sorry!"

Harry shrugged. "Yeah...well...can't say I wasn't completely unaware of the possibility of it."

Hermione frowned, still inspecting his jaw. "Are you sure you're alright? That was a pretty nasty punch."

"It wasn't so much the punch," Harry explained, "as it was the four foot fall straight onto my back. Drove the breath right out of my lungs."

Hermione only grew more concerned at that, and Harry got in the car and told her to do the same. When she did and looked over at Harry worriedly again, he said, "Look, Hermione. I've done everything I can to try to get you to be happy today. I even went to see your father with you. He ended up punching me in the face. And still, the thing I'm most sad about today is that you've only smiled once. I know I'm being selfish, but can you make me happy by helping me make you happy? Can you be happy from here on out? I know that wasn't how you wanted that situation to play out, but you shouldn't let him affect your happiness when you're around other people, especially me and Mary. So please, can you be happy that we're both here and we're celebrating your birthday?" When Hermione didn't respond for a moment, Harry asked, "If not for me, could you do it for Mary? I know she wants nothing more than to see you happy today."

Hermione was still for a long while. Finally, just when Harry thought she was going to disregard what he had said, she slowly smiled. "I think I can do that," she said.

Harry smiled back, relieved, and the two of them headed back to the cafe. Mary briefly fretted over the state of Harry's face, which was bruising quite nicely, before they moved on to eating the pizza that she had ordered. After that came the cake, which Hermione raved about quite a bit until Harry admitted that he had cooked it, at which point Hermione had blushed and thanked him, though the raving lessened.

Harry could see that Hermione was smiling with complete sincerity the entire time, which Harry couldn't help but smile in reply to.

Then Hermione opened her present, which Harry and Mary had both pitched in to buy. It was a first edition copy of _The Lord of the Rings_, and Hermione became so excited that she hugged Mary, then hugged Harry.

This was the first happy hug the two of them had shared since Harry had arrived in this universe, and he savored the contact up until Hermione pulled back with pink cheeks. Mary looked to thoroughly pleased about that one.

At the end of the night, as Harry walked home with a smile on his face, he couldn't help but muse that although the day didn't go as well as it could have, it ended up being pretty good in the end.

**A/N: Whew. Done. On to the next one!**


	9. Ain't no Rest for the Wicked

**A/N: Meant to have this up in only a week. And then, out of nowhere, school. *cries***

**Nevertheless, please enjoy! I'm really trying as best as I can to get these chapters out as quickly as I can!**

**Chapter 9 - Ain't no Rest for the Wicked**

"Ah!" Harry woke suddenly, cold sweat rolling down his face. He was taking shaky breaths and quickly jammed on his glasses as his balance came back to him.

He swung his legs over the edge of his bed and ran his shaky hands through his sweaty hair. He didn't know what he had dreamed about; the only thing he was sure of was that it was a nightmare. It had to be the same nightmare he had had the previous ten days.

He didn't know exactly what the nightmare entailed, but he was sure that it had to do with the feeling of heavy guilt that gradually settled into his chest over the course of the past few weeks; a week after Hermione's birthday. The other thing was that he didn't know what he was regretting; the only thing he was sure of was that the feeling was indeed regret.

He stared at the ground with his head in his hands for a couple minutes before finally standing up and warily rubbing at his eyes. He glanced at the clock and noticed that it was only four in the morning. He normally woke up at five to be at work by six.

The only thing was, he had today off. He would have loved to work at the cafe every single day, but Harry was only seventeen in this universe, and thus still a minor. He and Hermione couldn't have the same days off, either, since there needed to be at least two of them working the shop at a time.

He sighed and picked up his school bag so he could take it downstairs with him. He had decided a week earlier that he should start studying for his N.E.W.T.s, since they were such an important part of his magical life.

So he sat down and studied for a couple hours, not even noticing when Cat came downstairs and took a seat opposite him, a book in her hands. She started reading and the silence continued until Harry finally finished studying almost three hours after he started, at which point he closed his books, stood up, and stretched, his brain a little more than scrambled with all the information he had just taken in. It was at that point that he noticed Cat had been in the same room as him.

"Holy Merlin!" he shouted, jumping, his heart racing in his chest as he noticed Cat. "How long have you been in here?" he asked once he had calmed down a little and Cat's laughing had subsided.

"Probably an hour and a half," Cat admitted after a second of thought. "You were so serious in your studying," she said, giggling.

Harry raised an eyebrow at her. "I think you might want to start studying too," he said. "Our N.E.W.T.s are nothing to laugh at."

Catherine shrugged noncommittally. "I'm pretty confident in my magical knowledge," she said.

Harry looked at her skeptically for a few seconds before finally saying, "Suit yourself. I'm going out." He began walking to the door, then asked, "You coming with?"

Cat nodded and went out with him, closing the door behind her and walking alongside him toward the cafe. Harry had made it a habit of his to go eat at the cafe whenever he had a day off, and Catherine had joined him the past few times, coming to be pretty close to Hermione in that time. Just as he had thought, they had hit it off pretty quickly. Who would've guessed a daughter of the infamous Sirius Black would be friends with someone like Hermione some day?

Once they arrived, Harry and Cat went to their normal spot and took a seat. Hermione waved 'hi' to them and headed to the back to get their orders since she knew what they wanted by now. She joined them a few minutes later with food of her own, no doubt by the order of Mary.

Cat and Hermione fell into casual conversation about how things were going for the two of them while Harry became lost in his own thoughts, his fork idly poking his food. He was trying to pinpoint the source of his guilt again, wishing all the while that his stomach would stop churning.

"Harry? Harry?" he heard, disrupting his thoughts.

He looked up to see Hermione and Catherine looking at him worriedly, and if Harry hadn't felt so terrible he would have laughed at the identical expressions on their faces. "Yeah," he said, trying to brush it off. These two already had enough problems of their own to deal with.

"Harry," Hermione said, smiling softly. "What's up?"

Harry sighed and cradled his head in his hands. "I don't know," he admitted miserably, cradling his head in his hands.

Hermione stood up and nudged him over, sitting beside him so she could rub his back soothingly. "Hey, what's wrong?" she asked, concerned.

Harry, whose face was now on the table, turned his head so he was looking at Hermione. "I have the worst feeling in my stomach." Hermione frowned. "It feels like guilt...and it hurts."

Hermione smiled sympathetically. "Then I think the first thing you need to do is figure out why you're so guilty," she said. "Then you have to make sure you act in a way that's going to leave you with no guilt."

Harry nodded as Cat, who had been watching silently the whole time, pushed Hermione's plate of food over to her. Hermione sat comfortingly close to Harry the whole time. Unfortunately for him, he was neither in the mood nor condition to appreciate her sentiments. He sighed and remained silent as Cat and Hermione continued to talk, though in a considerably less cheerful manner. Harry hated that he affected their mood as well, but just couldn't find it in himself to act even the slightest bit cheerful.

Hermione smiled at him and said, "Feel better when you come in tomorrow or you'll scare away all the customers!"

Harry chuckled weakly and bid her farewell, then headed out of the cafe with Catherine. They walked home in silence for a several minutes, both lost in their own thoughts, before Cat suddenly stopped, Harry following suit.

"Harry!" she said, eyes shining brightly.

"Yes?" he asked in return, slightly worried.

"Your parents!" she said excitedly.

Now Harry was really confused. "What about them?" he asked.

"The reason you're guilty!" she said. "I've thought of everything that could possibly be causing you to feel guilty, and all I can come up with is the fact that your parents don't know you're not _their_Harry."

Harry blinked, then searched his feelings to discover that she seemed to be right. "Cat..." he said, then grinned, his guilt melting away now that he knew why he was feeling so. "I think you hit the nail right on the head."

"Great!" she said, genuinely happy. He wouldn't say it aloud, but Harry was grateful he already had a friend in this universe who cared about him enough to help find out why he was guilty. "Now all you have to do is determine what you're going to do about it."

Harry thought about it long and hard as they walked back to Cat's house, and when they arrived at the doorstep, he said, "I'm going to have dinner with them and tell them what's going on."

Catherine nodded. "I think that sounds like an excellent idea."

* * *

So, a good twelve hours later, Harry found himself sitting at the dinner table with his father while his mother brought the food out, his heart pounding in his chest out of nervousness.

"Your mother told me all about this girl of yours," he said, nudging Harry conspiratorially. "How are things between you two?"

Harry shrugged. "We aren't going out yet," he said.

"Why not?" Lily asked as she sat down, the pasta she made looking absolutely delicious.

"Various reasons," Harry replied as he helped himself. He wanted to eat at least one peaceful meal with his parents before breaking the news to them. "I do work with her though."

"You have a job?" James asked with a look of pride on his face. "Good man. What do you do?"

"I work as a chef at a cafe," Harry said.

James looked at Harry oddly. "Since when do you cook?" he asked.

Harry opened his mouth to instantly lie, but a thought hit him. The whole reason he was here was because he felt guilty for lying to them. He needed to stop and set everything straight. So he got some pasta on his fork and took a bite of the best pasta he had ever tasted, savoring it even as his throat began to burn from the fear of telling his parents that they weren't actually his parents. He chewed the food slowly, sighed happily when he finished it, then casted a warming charm on his food just in case he had a chance to eat more of it afterwards. He sincerely hoped he would be able to once it was all over.

He looked his father and mother in the eye, and he saw concern on their faces. They must have sensed the mood. "It's because I'm not the son you raised," he admitted quietly.

There was at least thirty seconds of silence after he dropped the bombshell that Lily laughed weakly and said, "What do you mean? Did you find yourself while on this little mission of yours?"

Harry sighed. "I'm not on a mission for Dumbledore," he said. "He let me leave Hogwarts because of my circumstances."

James still hadn't said anything; he was sitting in the same exact position, staring unwaveringly at Harry's face.

Harry cleared his throat. "If you two are ready, I'm going to ask you to not talk while I tell you a story."

James nodded immediately, then had to look pointedly at his wife when she opened her mouth to respond. Lily slowly closed her mouth and nodded too, settling into a comfortable position. Harry started at the end, explaining how he was from a parallel universe. Then he went back to the beginning, starting from the night Lily and James all the way to the night he was blasted to the universe he was currently in. Then he explained what he was doing now.

"I'm sorry for not telling you guys," he said, looking down at the table. "I'm sorry that I don't know how it happened. And I'm sorry for taking some of your money for Hermione."

Harry's mouth and throat were dry by the time he was done talking, and Lily and James were staring at him oddly. Harry could tell they didn't know exactly what to say.

Finally, after what seemed forever, James said, "So let me get this straight. You aren't the Harry we raised?"

Harry slowly nodded.

"And you don't know how you were transported to our universe?" Lily asked.

Harry shook his head sadly. "Even Dumbledore doesn't know how something like this happened," he said. "He's never even heard of it happening." He laughed sadly. "I do have to say though, that it was nice being able to say I had parents even if it was only for a few months."

Lily and James looked at each other and seemed to communicate without speaking. After they had non-verbally agreed on whatever it was they were 'talking' about, Lily said, "Harry...well, it isn't really in us to abandon you, so there's no need to be afraid. You're our son. I'm assuming that wherever this universe's Harry ended up, he's being taken care of by...us. And if not...well, we raised him well. I know your universe's Lily and James wouldn't want you to abandoned." Harry felt tears in his eyes, both out of happiness, relief, and sadness for these two parents who had done such a good job raising their son. "So there's no need to feel bad about it. It wasn't like you maliciously swapped places with the other Harry with the intent of causing people harm."

"I...I don't know what to say," Harry said, his throat tight.

"What you can do is come to the Halloween party we're throwing on Sunday," James said, smiling. "Since you aren't in school you're free to come."

"Speaking of which," said Lily, "what are you doing about your NEWT's, Harry?"

Harry grinned at his mother. "I've been studying. Dumbledore said I can go back and take them with the rest of the seventh years," he explained.

Lily looked disapproving yet held back her response, allowing James to say, "I take my earlier statement back. You can't go to the Halloween party we're throwing." Harry and Lily both looked at him, shocked. Then James grinned. "That is, unless you bring that girl with you."

Harry nodded enthusiastically, relief seeping through him. He thought James had changed his mind. Harry picked up his fork and started eating his pasta again as the three shared casual conversation, Harry thankful for their loving nature. They might not exactly have felt as close as the Weasley's had always felt when Harry had visited, but they were close enough for Harry's sake and he knew they would grow nothing but even closer.

* * *

"Sure," Hermione replied with a smile. "I would love to meet your parents."

Harry blinked, surprised. "Oh..okay," he said, thrown off by her immediate acceptance of his offer for her to go to the Halloween party with him.

"What?" Hermione asked, frowning slightly. "Do you not want me to go?"

"No no no!" Harry insisted. "I was only surprised that you agreed so easily. I thought I would have to persuade you."

Hermione's cheeks turned the slightest bit pink. "It's not like this is a date or anything...right?" she asked.

"Of course not," Harry said quickly, confused when Hermione's face fell the tiniest bit. "Unless you want it to be?" he asked hesitantly. Had he said something wrong?

"No," she said, shaking her head, though she did seem a bit happier.

_Gah, girls are so confusing_, Harry thought to himself before slowly saying, "Okay. My parents work on and are good friends with many technological innovators in the country, so if you see anything that seems like...well...magic, just remember that it's my parents' friends showing off to each other."

It was Hermione's turn to nod slowly, looking at Harry oddly. "That's pretty interesting," she said.

Harry sighed. She could see right through him. "I'm sorry," he said. "I can't tell you the truth yet. It has to do with my lie. I promise you, though-"

"Harry," Hermione said, and Harry looked up at her to find that she was smiling at him. "I'm not angry about your lie. You'll tell me when you're ready and I'm alright with that. So don't feel so bad about lying to me about that...okay?"

Harry nodded and smiled in relief. "Thanks," he said. "Oh, and remember that we're not dressing in costumes. So just come wearing your finest, because it's meant to be more of a fancy get-together."

Hermione nodded as Mary poked her head into the kitchen. "Come on, Hermione. We have a few customers out there that need some help," she said, and as soon as Hermione left, Mary grinned at Harry.

"Things seem to be going well between you two," she said. "She doesn't even care that you lied to her. That's a really big deal."

Harry frowned slightly. "She cares," he said softly. "She just doesn't care as much."

Mary slapped Harry's shoulder in a friendly manner. "Either way you look at it, that's definitely a good sign," she said. "You two could be dating soon."

Harry shrugged. "Maybe," he said. "As long as I'm with her, though, I don't mind taking it at her pace."

Mary cracked an egg and poured it into a pan that was on the stove. "Spoken like a true man," she said as Harry cracked an egg of his own. "I like to hear that."

"Thanks," Harry said.

"So will you be picking her up on Sunday?" she asked.

"What?" Harry asked in return.

Mary stopped cooking to look at him. "How is Hermione getting to the party?" she asked.

Harry opened his mouth to answer her question, then realized that he didn't know the answer to the question. "That...that's a really good question," he finally said. "I don't have a driver's license."

Mary frowned. "How have you been getting to work everyday?" she asked.

Harry smiled sheepishly. "I walk. It's only about a mile, so it's not too bad," he said.

"Do you two need a ride to your parents' on Sunday, then?" she asked. "Hermione does have her license, after all."

Harry thought about it for a second, and then, realizing there would be no other way to get to the party without raising Hermione's suspicions, he said, "That would be great. Thanks."

Mary smiled. "I don't mind doing it when it makes Hermione this happy," she said. She looked at Harry seriously. "You better hope whatever you're hiding doesn't break her heart, or I swear I _will_ find you and I _will_do unspeakable things to you."

Harry blanched. He didn't know what it was, but Mary had an aura she was sending off that scared him more than facing Voldemort ever had. He swallowed hard, nodded, and said, "I understand."

Mary smiled sweetly. "Good."

* * *

"Wow," Harry stunned, his eyes on Hermione as she opened the door that led to the stairs. "You...you look...amazing."

She was wearing a red dress that ended just above her knees and her hair was done up in an elegant knot. Harry wasn't exaggerating when he said she looked amazing.

Hermione blushed furiously. "Thanks," she said. "You don't look too bad yourself."

After bidding farewell to Mary, who had the look of a proud parent on her face as she watched Hermione leave, the two teens got in the car and headed off for Godric's Hollow, the directions to which Harry had acquired from Sirius the day before.

Hermione seemed unnaturally quiet on the drive over, and Harry asked, "You alright?"

"Just a little nervous," Hermione admitted.

Harry laughed lightly. "About what?" he asked.

"Your parents," she replied.

Harry stopped, his smile frozen on his face. That was right; Hermione would be meeting his parents in just a few minutes. Even though he knew his parents were going to love her, he couldn't help but be nervous about their meeting. And not only that, but the fact that Hermione was nervous showed him that when she was ready, she was serious about going out with him. The severity of the situation did nothing to assuage Harry's quickly-escalating nerves.

He cleared his throat and said, "Understandable." And, in an effort to bolster her confidence, he added, "My parents are going to love you though."

"If you say so," she replied, her grip only growing tighter on the wheel.

The two arrived at the part about fifteen minutes early, which allowed time for Hermione to meet Lily and James beforehand. Hermione nervously took a deep breath and nodded for Harry to open the door, which he did and called out, "Mum? Dad?"

James's head appeared around the corner a couple seconds later, a grin on his face. He went up to Harry and gave him a hug, then turned to Hermione. "And who's the pretty young lady?" he asked.

Hermione was smiling nervously when Harry glanced at her before saying, "Hermione, this is my dad. Dad, this is Hermione, my friend."

James took Hermione's hand in his and skeptically said, "Right. _Friend_." Harry swore he saw James slip a conspiratorial wink in there.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Potter," Hermione said politely, a little more relaxed than earlier now that she had seen what type of man Harry's father was. How was it possible to be nervous when he was so laid back?

James scoffed. "Don't make me feel so old, Hermione," he said. He nudged Harry with his elbow playfully. "I already feel old enough with this guy calling me 'dad' all the time. It's just James."

Hermione laughed and said, "Sounds good to me."

Lily popped her head in at that moment and smiled brilliantly. "You must be Hermione," she said. "Harry's told us so much about you!"

Harry opened his mouth in horror to tell her to stop, but it was too late. Hermione looked over at him with an eyebrow raised, and he smiled back sheepishly. He looked over at Lily to find her smiling at him innocently. A warm feeling filled Harry's heart.

_That's just my mother doing what mothers do best._

"I'm glad to finally meet you!" Lily said, shaking Hermione's hand. "Come in, come in!"

The four of them went into the main living room, where Sirius, Amelia, Teddy, Cat, Caitlyn, and Marcus were putting the finishing touches on the living room, which had been cleared of all furniture and expanded to about five or six times its normal size.

It became apparent to Harry at this point that he had no idea he was going to make it through this night without Hermione discovering magic. He did intend to eventually tell Hermione about it; he just didn't know if this night was the right night for it.

"That's funny," Hermione muttered, barely audible. "It looked a lot smaller from the outside."

Harry felt sweat bead on his forehead.

Luckily, Cat was ready for it. She turned around at the sound of Hermione's voice and walked up to give her a hug. "Hermione!" she said. "You look so pretty in that dress!" She smiled devilishly. "Trying to impress someone?" she asked, lowering her voice.

Hermione blushed again. "I just wanted to look nice," she said evenly. She looked around. "This is really much more spacious than one would think from the outside, though."

"Ah," said James somewhat awkwardly. "Optical illusion. People coming in for the first time say that all the time."

As the rest of the people got to work and Harry went to help them, he heard Hermione ask, "So what do you two do for a living?"

"I'm a...detective," James said proudly and a tad awkwardly. "I like spending my days living on the edge and catching criminals."

"More like sitting around all day doing paperwork," Sirius said just loud enough for James to hear.

"Oi!" James responded. "We've had a small flux in crime recently, I'll have you know."

Sirius turned to face Harry's father, looking at him with dead seriousness. "All of that paperwork must be cramping your wrist quite a bit."

"That's really interesting," Hermione intervened, saving face for James. "Do you like your job? Do you feel like you're doing some good?"

"Of course!" James said, a stupid grin on his face. "I get to catch criminals all day and I feel good when I see the bars slam home with them on the other side."

Hermione nodded, fairly impressed. Harry was impressed that his dad had managed to not make an ass out of himself after his sloppy start.

"And what do you do, Mrs. Potter?" Hermione asked.

"I'm the head of the emergency department at a hospital," she replied with much more ease than her husband, obviously referring to St. Mungo's.

"Oh!" Hermione said, interesting making her eyes shine. "That's so awesome! I was actually considering a career in the medical field."

Now it was Lily's turn to ask Hermione a question in response as she shooed her husband away so he could help set up. "Any other careers you're looking into?" she asked.

"It's either a doctor or a lawyer," Hermione replied. "I'm looking to go to school at Harvard."

Lily's eyes darted to Harry's at that point, a mixture of happiness and question in them. Harry responded with a nod, letting his mother know that not only was Hermione brilliant, but he approved of her decision of going to Harvard. He didn't know why she would be questioning about the Harvard part, but he figured he'd reach the point where he would find it out on his own.

He was also pleasantly surprised at how well he and his mother could communicate non-verbally - they just seemed to be on the same wavelength.

Finally, Lily turned back to Hermione and said, "Well, if you ever have any questions about entering the medical field, don't hesitate to come to me."

"Thank you," said Hermione with sincerity.

Lily leaned in a little closer to Hermione and spoke to her in a voice so low that Harry had to strain his ears to hear. "And between you and me, too many good brains are going to the law these days. We could use some more smart people in the medical field."

Hermione only smiled in response, and James, who had been whispering with Sirius the whole time Lily and Hermione were talking, announced, "Shouldn't you give Hermione the grand tour, Harry? This is her chance to see the house you grew up in before everyone arrives."

Harry nodded and said, "That sounds like a great idea."

The only problem was that he hadn't even had a grand tour and didn't know where any of the rooms were or what they were used for. He was glad he was talented at doing things on the fly.

He grabbed Hermione's hand, surprising her just long enough to drag her out of the living room and in to the next room, which turned out to be the kitchen. He took her from room to room, thankfully recognizing the use of each one as he passed through them. Hermione seemed interested to warrant a visit to the upstairs, where Harry's room was.

His own room was the room he was fearing the most, of course. He didn't know what sorts of embarrassing things would be in there.

It had been cleaned up nicely when they arrived, however, and Hermione took the liberty of closely inspecting all of his belongings with glee. Harry was thankful that anything magical had been stowed away somewhere. His parents had really planned this out in advance quite well.

"I never would have thought you'd be one to enjoy reading American classic literature," Hermione said, gesturing the relatively small bookshelf that was placed in the corner of the room.

"Oh yeah," Harry said, quickly squinting at the spines of the books. "To Kill a Mockingbird was definitely my favorite."

It seemed that he had succeeded in fooling Hermione with a lie for once, for she excitedly grabbed both of his hands and said, "Me too! It's such a wonderful story!"

Harry was too busy relishing in the contact the two were sharing to truly listen to what Hermione had to say about the plot of a book he had never read. Just as she started asking a question he was most likely meant to answer, however, there came the ring of the doorbell and Harry quickly said, "We should probably go downstairs. After all, I'm technically one of the hosts of the party considering this is the house I live in."

Hermione nodded and followed right behind Harry, not letting go of his hand. The two of them made it into the living room just in time to invite Frank and Alice Longbottom into the house, and soon after their arrival came a whole host of guests. There were so many guests that the party spilled through the kitchen, which had a sliding glass door leading outdoors, and back into the backyard.

Harry and Hermione chilled in the backyard with Catherine and Teddy, who seemed noticeably awkward around each other. Harry had to resist the urge to sigh. It seemed that they weren't making much progress.

"Do they like each other?" Hermione whispered in Harry's ear.

In return, he muttered, "Long story. But essentially...yes."

"They look like they'd be cute together," Hermione whispered back.

Harry instantly froze as he looked past Hermione and saw a party guest get hoisted up by the ankle as if by magic, which of course it was. It seemed that everyone didn't get the memo that the theme of the halloween party was 'muggle,' which meant that no magic was allowed.

Once again, another ingenious plan by his parents that they had managed to initiate, though not one hundred percent efficiently, it seemed. Hermione frowned and made to turn around, but Teddy quickly said, "So, Hermione..."

She stopped turning around smiled at Teddy. "Yes?" she asked.

"Uh..." Teddy said, having obviously called her name as a distraction with no follow up ready.

"Are you planning on going to school in America next year?" Cat asked quickly with a strained smile on her face.

"I'm hoping I can," Hermione said slowly, suspecting something was up.

Before she had time to question the three of them, however, soft music started playing from nowhere, seemingly. It was a good thing muggles had invented hidden speakers, or Hermione would have already found out about everything by this point.

Harry quickly stood, offered Hermione his hand, and smiled. He couldn't pass up this opportunity to dance with her even if he couldn't dance at all. "Dance, milady?" he asked.

Hermione smiled up at him and took his hand, allowing him to lead her to a more open space. The two of them started dancing, which in actually turned in quite a few feet being stepped on.

A few minutes into it, Hermione laughed and said, "Sorry. If only I could dance."

Harry laughed in response. "It's alright," he said. "I can't dance either!"

Harry felt happiness flood through him as Hermione laughed again and allowed him to twirl her, the setting sun throwing a myriad of colors into the sky, giving them the most beautiful evening to be dancing under.

And at that point, Harry knew he was the luckiest man alive at that moment, with Hermione in his arms and a smile on her face.

Now he just had to make sure to keep the lucky streak going.


	10. Take Me Out

**A/N: Howdy all! I really hate taking so long to update, but I can't really help it when I have so much dang schoolwork!**

**I hope you'll all bear with me as I continue to do my best to get these chapters out as soon as I can!**

**Chapter 10 - Take Me Out**

"Harry," Hermione said oddly, her arms around his neck as they swayed to the music.

"Yeah?" he asked, looking down at her to find her trying her hardest to concentrate on his face.

She grinned. "You're really really cute, y'know," she said, her words somewhat slurred, then half-hugged him as they continued to dance.

And a thought hit Harry.

_She's drunk_.

He didn't know how it had happened, but Hermione had managed to get drunk at his parents' Halloween party.

Hermione hiccuped and laughed, then her eyes widened. She looked up at Harry with oddly focused eyes and said, "I'm drunk," with dead seriousness. Then she laughed again and twirled, almost falling to the ground as she did so. "I'm drunk!" she said jubilantly.

Harry laughed weakly as he continued to dance with her half-heartedly, somewhat taken back by this side of Hermione. He knew she would never get drunk of her own accord, and wondered if this situation was salvageable in any way. The only upside he could think of was that she probably wouldn't remember the blatant use of magic going on around her. Then again, if she wasn't drunk enough...suffice to say, the whole 'muggle' theme of the party wasn't being pulled off too well, the various witches and wizards attending the party using magic for tricks, fun, and even menial tasks, such as levitating their drink to follow them around.

Harry looked back down at Hermione to find her staring at him with fascinated interest. He frowned and she said, "Harry, your eyes...they're so green."

Harry smiled weakly, seriously worried at this point. He said, "Thank you. It's getting pretty late. You ready to head out yet?"

Hermione shook her head resolutely. "I'm having fun," she slurred as she tried to get Harry to dance.

He smiled at her, though, as one would smile at a child, and said, "I would be really happy if we could get you in bed, Hermione. It's getting pretty late."

She pouted, finally giving up and crossing her arms over her chest. "Fine," she said. "Just let me grab my keys."

She fumbled for her keys in her pockets for a few minutes, almost losing her balance a couple times in the process. When she finally found them and held them up triumphantly, Harry quickly snatched them out of her hands. "Hey!" she said, trying to focus on his face angrily.

Harry laughed, trying to make light of a very serious situation. She seriously had no idea how drunk she was. He said, "It's a pretty warm night. How about I walk you home?"

"What a gentleman," she said, latching onto his arm. "Where are we going?"

"We're going to the cafe," said Harry. "I'm sure Mary's worried about you."

Hermione nodded. "We should say goodnight to Mary. She deserves a good night."

"Alright then," said Harry, who turned on the spot, squeezing Hermione tighter to him as the feeling of apparation ripped through him, pushing the breath out of his lungs until they appeared at their destination.

Hermione stumbled alongside Harry as the two of them walked from the alley Harry had apparated them to until they got to the cafe, where Harry held the door open for Hermione just so she could trip on the small lip of the door and go crashing onto the floor. She was giggling as she stood up, which Harry helped her do as he looked up to find what he was dreading most: Mary with a look that definitely wasn't approving of the situation.

"Mary, I...Hermione..." he said as Hermione started falling again, almost pulling Harry down with her. He struggled to remain upright and said, "She somehow ended up drunk at my parents' party. I'm sorry. I take complete responsibility for this."

Mary sighed. "Well, at least you did the gentlemanly thing and brought her back here," she said, opening the back door leading upstairs. She smiled at Harry. "I'm too old to help a wasted eighteen-year-old up the stairs. Do you mind?"

Harry nodded and Hermione tried to detach herself from him to go stumbling in some unknown direction, but he quickly caught her and forced her towards the stairs. After several minutes and a lot of hard work the two finally managed to make it to the top, Mary silent behind them the entire time.

The stairs, it turned out, led directly to the middle of a hallway in which there were two doors at either end and one directly in front of their faces. Mary gestured to the left and Harry helped Hermione along, their progress much easier now that Hermione could use the walls to help with her lack of balance.

When he opened the door, he was faced with what was undoubtedly Hermione's room. The walls were light blue and along one wall was a giant bookcase, though it only had a handful of books on it. On the bedside table was the 'Lord of the Rings' book Harry and Mary had purchased for her birthday along with a small lamp and a small television. Other than those three pieces of furniture, the small amount of space remaining was immaculate.

Harry gently deposited Hermione on her bed, where she lay still, her energy seeming to have worn out. She giggled, and Mary said, "You help her get ready for bed, Harry, I'm going to go grab a bucket for her in case she needs to hurl later on."

Harry nodded as he pulled Hermione's shoes off. He frowned at her and said, "Well, I hope you don't mind too much if that dress gets a little wrinkled."

It was more to himself than anything, but Hermione nodded as she pushed the covers down. "I'm tired, Harry," she said. "Tuck me in like mum used to."

Harry felt a lump rise in his throat and did as he was told, tenderly bringing the comforter up to her shoulders and tucking it in a bit at the sides. Hermione was smiling, her eyes already closed, and Harry couldn't help but kiss her forehead.

"Love you," Hermione mumbled, making Harry's throat tighten and his heart soar simultaneously (an odd feeling, to say the least). This 'love you' may have been meant for her mother, said in a drunken stupor, or was actually genuine; the fact of the matter was that she said it, and at Harry. He could only imagine how good it would feel when she said it to him with conviction (and when she was lucid and sober).

"I love you too," he said softly and her smile grew the tiniest bit, her breathing evening out as she fell asleep.

Harry got up and turned off her light, then left the room only to come face to face with Mary, who was waiting patiently. "So you want to take responsibility for Hermione being in this condition, Harry?"

Harry hesitated, then slowly nodded his agreement. "Yes," he said.

Mary seemed satisfied and said, "Then you're going to be staying the night so you can take care of Hermione tomorrow morning." Despite the fact that Harry had no intention of protesting - he would gladly care for Hermione - Mary added, "And I'm not letting you walk home at this time of night anyway."

"Sounds good to me," he said. "Where am I going to sleep?"

Mary motioned for him to wait a moment, then went to one of the doors in the hallway, opened it, and took out a sleeping bag and a pillow. "Here you go," she said. "You'll be sleeping in Hermione's room."

Harry gave her a surprised look and she waved her hand at him. "It's fine," she said. "She might need something tonight and will be too sick to do anything about it. Plus, I know you aren't going to try anything on her while she's drunk."

She gave Harry the most menacing look, as if to say, _Don't you dare prove me wrong._

Harry nodded, bade Mary goodnight, and headed into Hermione's room, setting up on the floor quietly. He sighed, took off his shirt because it was weird to sleep in one, slipped in the sleeping bag, and slowly fell asleep to the sound of Hermione's soft breathing above him.

* * *

"Harry."

"Haaaaaaaaarry," a voice said softly in his ear.

Harry groggily woke up, confused as to where he was, and opened his mouth to yawn...except he took in a mouthful of hair. His eyes shot open and he came face to face with the top of Hermione's head. She must have rolled out of her bed at some point, because she was still asleep, her head on his chest and her arm wrapped around him, her blankets twisted around her. She seemed to be muttering his name in her sleep and nestled a bit closer to him when he shifted, her arm tightening around him.

"Hermione," Harry whispered, lightly shaking her. "Hermione, wake up."

Hermione groaned and tightened her hold on him, but despite how cute she was being, Harry had to wake her up. So her shook her a bit again and she slowly opened her eyes to come face to face with him in confusion. "Harry?" she asked, slowly.

Before she could register what was going on, though, she heaved once and started coughing. Harry helped her up and led her to the bathroom, where she immediately fell to her knees in front of the toilet and vomited, Harry holding her hair back while she emptied the contents of her stomach.

After what seemed to be forever but was probably only two minutes, Hermione's puking turned into dry heaves, and her arms, which were still clutching the toilet, were shaking a little.

"What happened last night?" she groaned. "I don't remember anything."

"Anything?" Harry asked, unable to help himself. So she wouldn't remember him apparating her...

Hermione gave him a weird look and slowly lowered herself so she was sitting down with her back against the wall. "So what happened?" she asked, rubbing her head.

Harry grinned at her. "You seemed to have grabbed the wrong drink last night," he said.

"I don't think I'd get this drunk from just one drink, Harry," Hermione said.

"Ah," he replied. The glasses had refilled on their own; he would have to improvise. "Ah...er...you might have picked up the wrong drink multiple times then." Hermione looked at him skeptically. "There were a lot of people there, you know."

"Hmmm," she said, rubbing her head with more vigor. "I'll have to take your word on it for that one, I guess. My head hurts too much to think."

Harry let out a mental sigh of relief, then helped Hermione stand back up. He walked her back to her room and sat her up in her bed, where she grabbed the puke bowl Mary had grabbed for her and set it on her lap.

Harry stood there staring at her for a second until she said, "So...what are we gonna do?"

Harry shrugged. "Watch a movie?" he asked, eyeing the VCR player her television was resting on.

"I only have, like, three movies," she said. "The librarian was going to throw them away so I decided to keep them."

Harry shrugged. "That's fine. You just need to chill," he said. "That's going to be the best way for you to get better."

Hermione nodded. "Alright then. Drag my nightstand out to the other end of the room and we'll watch."

Harry did just that and put on the Lion King, one of literal three movies Hermione owned. He sat on the bed with her, and, besides the few puking incidents Hermione had, it was pretty peaceful, with Hermione resting her head on his shoulder and all. They watched Hermione's other two movies, which also happened to be children movies, and by the end of the third one, Hermione was asleep again with her head on his shoulder.

Harry felt himself dozing off after the third film, and right when he was about to fall asleep, Hermione shot awake, her eyes wide open. "I remember," she said in horror.

Harry immediately felt his heart sink. "I...I remember," Hermione repeated, slightly disturbed.

"And what exactly do you remember, Hermione?" Harry asked, hoping against all hope that she didn't remember what he was afraid she would remember.

"You pulled me in close and then...and then...we were suddenly right here," she said, her eyes not leaving his. "And I know I'm not missing any part of that since there's no way in heck I drove and I know I didn't ride in your parents' car."

Harry swallowed. Hard.

"How did I get back here, Harry?" Hermione asked. "How did you get us back here?"

Harry's heart was pounding in his chest as he tried to think of any sort of lie that seemed in halfway plausible so he could fool Hermione. His hand even twitched toward his wand, which was in his magically expanded back pocket, so he could erase her memory of last night. And then he realized that doing either of these things would get him and their relationship nowhere. All he would be doing was putting off the inevitable.

"Alright," Harry said slowly, not meeting her eyes. "I'm about to tell you the secret you want to know." He looked up. "Are you ready for it?"

Hermione hesitated only the slightest bit, then nodded emphatically.

Harry smiled weakly. "Well, I'm a wizard."

Hermione blanched. "Er...what?" she said. So she clearly hadn't been expecting that.

"I can do magic," he explained. "I can make things happen with magic."

Hermione chuckled weakly. "Don't be silly, Harry. If magic existed the entire world would surely know about it," she said. "There's no way something that big could be kept a secret."

Harry raised an eyebrow at her. "That's what you'd like to think," he said. "The other big secret is...well...that you're my best friend of eight years."

Now Hermione was looking at him like he was crazy. Harry sighed, frustrated with himself. This wasn't exactly going how he wanted it to. "Listen, Hermione, I'm going to tell you my life story and I'd like for you to not interrupt," he said. "Do I have your word?"

Hermione nodded.

And so Harry began, starting with the death of his parents and going all the way up until the moment he met her again and how he had loved her all along in this universe and that he was glad he had found her. At the end, he stopped and smiled weakly, noticing with a start that it was already completely dark out. "So...uh...that's it," he said, noticing how dry his throat was. "That's my life up until this point."

Hermione stared at him for a long while, making him incredibly nervous. She licked her lips, opened her mouth to say something, then closed it to reconsider. "I...I don't even know what to say, Harry. I'm having trouble wrapping my head around this."

"I don't know what you should say, Hermione," Harry confessed. "I know this is a lot of information to take in at once."

Hermione shook her head and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Can you...can you just leave the room for a little? I have to think."

Harry frowned, though Hermione didn't see it. At least she hadn't freaked out on him. But he wanted to say something that would make her see him in the best possible light.

"Hermione...I..." he said, grasping at thin air.

"Leave, Harry," she said, her voice getting colder. "Just...I need to be alone for a minute."

Harry let his eyes shut and reluctantly stood up, taking his time as he left the room and shut the door behind him before leaning back on it. How had this happened? Just earlier that day she had fallen asleep in his arms with her head on his shoulder and they were crying as Scar threw Mufasa into the stampede. Now Hermione was angry at him, or afraid, or...

Harry didn't know exactly what it was, but Hermione had strong, negative feelings toward him at the moment.

Just as he was about to break down and angrily punch the wall, Mary poked her head out from the stairwell. "Ah, Harry," she said. "What are you doing out here?"

Harry looked over at her, hot tears in his eyes. He couldn't get anything past the lump in his throat. Why was he becoming so emotional? Hermione hadn't even said anything yet!

Mary's smile turned into a frown. She took a deep breath, then indicated that he should follow her before going downstairs to the kitchen.

Harry followed, pulling a chair out in the diner as Mary fiddled around in the kitchen. She came out a few minutes later with two steaming cups of hot chocolate in her hands, setting one in front of Harry before taking her seat across from him.

They were silent for a long while as tension grew between them and they sipped at their drinks, both waiting for the other to break the silence first. Harry was thankful that it ended up being Mary, but what she said certainly surprised him. "So you finally told her, eh?"

Harry's head snapped back to her in surprise. "You know?" he said.

Mary laughed. "Of course I know," she said. "You're a Potter. Everyone in the magical world knows the Potters. Heck, I even have one of your brooms up in my room. Fine racing brooms, if you ask me."

Harry was completely speechless. He would have never expected this from Mary. "How...you're...you're a witch?" he managed.

Mary raised an eyebrow at him. "I just confessed to as much, didn't I?" She sighed. "Yes, I'm a witch, but I haven't done magic since my husband passed." She fell silent, and when she spoke again her voice was a whisper. "I don't even know if I can do magic anymore, to be honest."

"I'm sorry," Harry said, unsure of how to handle this situation.

Mary waved him off. "My husband was an idiot," she said lovingly. "But he was a brave idiot. And he died saving an entire town from a maniacal werewolf. He even managed to take the werewolf with him."

"Wow," Harry said. "That's amazing. Do you think I've heard of him?"

Mary laughed, though Harry could see tears sparkling in her eyes in the dim light cast by the moon. "I don't really know if anyone's heard of him. He went around the world doing good things for good people and I travelled along with him, always by his side. He had planned to eventually turn his exploits into a series of books, and I must say the titles he came up with were quite humorous. That was something I had told myself I needed to talk to him about and help him with."

"If you don't mind me asking, what were some of the names?" Harry asked. Although this conversation was a bit depressing, Mary seemed to be so happy talking about this with him. Who was he to take this moment away from her?

Mary laughed again. "The thing about my husband was that he was absolutely obsessed with alliterations, you see. So some of the titles were...oh, I don't know..._'Break with a Banshee'_ or _'Year with the Yeti_.' Silly things like that."

Now Harry was really surprised. It wasn't even possible. Never. Not in a million years. But Harry had to make sure. "Were you...Were you married to _Gilderoy Lockhart_?" he asked, absolutely astounded. How had someone like Gilderoy Lockhart netted such a nice, pretty woman in this universe? And she said she was with him every step of the way, which means...did he actually do those things in this universe?

"You've heard of my husband?" Mary asked, just as shocked as Harry. "How?"

Harry shook his head. This was getting weirder and weirder. He had thought Ron being an enemy was weird...but Gilderoy Lockhart being brave and loved by a woman Harry knew would never marry the half-wit Gilderoy Lockhart Harry knew...now _that_was just plain weird.

The door from the kitchen opened at that moment, and both Harry and Mary looked over to find Hermione standing in the doorway, the light shining from behind her casting her long shadow across the length of the floor.

She was looking at Mary, shocked. "You...you're the same as Harry?" she asked incredulously. Harry and Mary's silence answered for her. "How could you two keep this a secret from me?"

_And the situation just went from bad to worse_, Harry couldn't help but think. "Hermione, I didn't even know she was a witch. Honestly."

Mary nodded. "Hermione, honey, I just told Harry here that I'm magical. I haven't even done magic since the passing of my husband."

Yet Hermione stood there looking devastated.

"Hermione," Harry said. "Mary has taken care of you for the past several months and you've known me this entire time. Are we really that different just because we can do magic?"

"No," Hermione said angrily. "You're different because you didn't even trust me enough to let me know!"

Well, she certainly seemed to be over the fact that they could do magic. Always a quick learner and never surprised.

"Hermione," Harry implored. "You have to understand the seriousness of this."

"_You _have to understand the seriousness of this, Harry!" Hermione said back. "You've known me for eight years already!"

Mary looked over at Harry with a confused look on her face, to which he just gestured that he'd tell her later.

"How does that change anything?" Harry asked. "I wanted to make sure you were ready for the news. If I had told you straight off you would have thought I was crazy."

Hermione glared at him. "No, instead you led me on for several months only to drop that ridiculous bombshell on me out of nowhere. It's my right to know that I've known you for eight years."

Harry slapped his forehead and rubbed it. He was getting a headache.

Definitely not going well.

Then Mary did something that would terrify Harry until the day he died. "Hermione Granger," she snapped, surprising the two teens. "You have to accept the fact right now that there are things at work in this world that are greater than your ego and any sense of truth and justice you hold. Now grow up and face the fact that you weren't ready to know about this yet. You're smarter than this. I've had enough of this nonsense." When she was finished, Harry swore she was towering over both of them despite being shorter than them.

Mary's eyes immediately widened, and Hermione gave one offended look before running up the stairs, slamming the door behind her. Mary groaned and sank into her chair as Harry looked at her in awe. She had been seriously scary when she did that. "Wow," he muttered.

"I can't believe I just did that," Mary mumbled into her arms. "That was a bit of an overreaction."

Harry patted her on the shoulder for moral support. "Don't worry about it," he said. "I'll set things right."

He went upstairs after Hermione and knocked on her door, only to receive no answer. "Come on, Hermione," he said loud enough for her to hear. "I know you're in there."

After he knocked again and still got no answer, Harry pulled out his wand and prepared to magically unlock the door. Hermione opened it before it came to that, though, and glared icily at him. "Come to lie to me some more?" she asked.

Harry snorted. "Really?" he said. "Can you drop it already? You're smart enough to know why we didn't tell you."

"Are you patronizing me?" Hermione asked, her face growing the tiniest bit pink out of embarrassment. "How dare-?"

Harry shut her up with a wave of his wand. "You seriously need to stop talking for just a minute and admit to yourself how you feel about this, Hermione." He grinned at her. She really wasn't that angry at him. He could have a little fun. He twirled his wand in his fingers and said, "I can patronize you all I want with this bad boy."

Hermione glared at him and shut her mouth after realizing that no sound was coming out.

Harry sighed as Hermione glared up at him. He smiled lazily at her. "You know what, Hermione. I really love you." Her eyes widened, her angry glare gone. "Even when you're angry. Even when you're being illogical, which is weird for me to even be saying. Even when you cry. I really love you even when you chastise me for not doing my homework to your standards. I love you when you fight right by my side." Hermione's face fell a little at those words, and Harry knew what she was thinking about. He tilted her chin up and said, "I know you aren't that same Hermione. But you know what? I love you all the same. I love the fact that you grew so indignant over the fact that you weren't in the know in regards to our magic. I love that you work at a small diner and have dreams of going to law school. I love that you're actually still the same Hermione I know, just in different circumstances. But most of all..." he paused for a moment to find Hermione blushing a deep red. "I really, really love it when you smile for me." He made her meet his eyes. "Can you smile for me, Hermione?"

Hermione stared back for a long moment, then the corners of her mouth lifted to form one of the most brilliant and breathtaking smiles Harry had ever seen.

"I love you, Hermione."

Hermione swallowed hard. "I don't know about love quite yet, but I really like you back," she confessed quietly.

_That's enough for now_, Harry thought to himself. This was going much better than he had planned. "Is it alright if I kiss you?" he asked.

Hermione bit her lip and said, "But I've been vomiting all day."

Harry laughed. "You really think I care about that?" he asked, then leaned in and pecked her on the lips, catching her by surprise.

"Hey! Not fair!" Hermione said, reaching up and wrapping her arms around his neck so she could pull him into a real kiss.

And they did kiss, and it was the best kiss of Harry's life until a flash went off, temporarily blinding him.

"Ha! Got it!" he heard Mary's voice say as he broke the kiss with Hermione.

"Mary!" Hermione said, embarrassed again as Harry laughed and Mary waved her camera around shouting, "I got it! I got it!"

And Harry knew Hermione was over it. The real question now was if they were going out or not.

That had definitely gone better than expected.

**A/N: And I'm officially tired. I stayed up until the wee hours of the morning so I could finally have this out for you guys! ^_^ Thanks so much for sticking with me and I hope you review for me! Once I finish my presentation on Thursday I should have much more time to write!**


	11. Can you Feel the Love Tonight

**Chapter 11 - Can you Feel the Love Tonight?**

Harry knocked on his parents' door, his hand in Hermione's and Mary behind them. When Lily answered the door, she gave them both a large grin, hugged them, then invited all of them inside.

Toting the presents they had purchased, the three employees of Mary's Cafe headed into the house and went to the sitting room, where James, Sirius, Caitlyn, Marcus, Catherine, Amelia, Remus, Nymphadora, and Teddy were all there, waiting for them. They all traded their hellos while Harry introduced Hermione and Mary to those who hadn't met her, earning a playful wink from Tonks when he introduced her as his girlfriend.

Lily disappeared into the kitchen and reappeared with steaming mugs of hot chocolate for the young couple and Mary, who all gratefully accepted them. And then came the moment Harry was waiting for...

"Present time!" James shouted eagerly, then reached forward and ripped a present open.

Sirius, Teddy, and Catherine followed with just as much energy. It seemed that Christmas at the Potters was a disorganized event in which all of the present-opening happened at once. Harry grinned at Hermione, who smiled back at him, and the two of them immediately reached for the present the other had gotten them.

Hermione opened her gift to find that Harry had gotten her a letter from him. It read:

_Hermione,_

_I'm really glad that I'm getting to spend Christmas with you this year. That in itself is one heck of a gift. I know how much you want to learn about my world and culture, especially with how thirsty for knowledge that incredibly sexy brain of yours is._

Hermione had to stop for a moment to make sure that nobody saw how red her face was. How could Harry be so straightforward like that? She had to suppress a laugh when she turned to face her boyfriend and he winked at her.

So maybe he was just being a little silly about it. Nonetheless...

_So my gift to you is a lifetime's trips to any and all magical locations so you can learn as much about the magical world as you want. Everything's on me, of course, if you want to buy anything. I'm incredibly happy you're interested in learning more about my life, and can't wait to take you there and have an amazing time._

_Love,_

_Harry_

Hermione smiled softly and carefully folded up the letter and pocketed it. It was the first time somebody outside of her family had ended a letter with the word 'Love' before their name. The fact that it was Harry who had written it made it that much better.

Harry, meanwhile, opened his present to find that Hermione had knitted him a hat, scarf, and mittens. All of them were colored blue and bronze, and Harry had no choice but to give her a wry smile. He had expanded on his past when she had asked, and he had explained about the change of houses from one universe to the next. While talking about it, he had informed her that he didn't think he deserved to be in such a house as Ravenclaw...he just wasn't smart enough.

Harry picked up the small slip of paper that had fallen off of the scarf when he had picked it up.

_To remind you to be more confident in your own abilities._

Harry smiled down at the paper and immediately donned the articles, finding that they fit perfectly. So maybe she was a little better when it came to being a seamstress in this universe. He smiled at Hermione and said, "Thanks."

"And thank you," she replied, happily patting her pocket to let Harry know she was keeping his letter. "I'm looking forward to this learning opportunity."

Harry laughed. "Trust me, Hermione, that much I do know," he said, and Hermione blushed.

The two of them resumed opening their presents, Harry pleased to receive a Gryffindor-colored snitch from his parents, James giving him the thumbs up when he held it up to the light to inspect it. He had expressed his pride when Harry had told his parents he had been sorted into Gryffindor in the other universe. From his parents, he also received two box seat tickets to the Appleby Arrows against the Chudley Cannons, and Lily's wink told him exactly who the second ticket was for.

Harry grinned back at her and slung an arm over Hermione's shoulders, pulling her in a bit closer to him as she opened her present from Mary, which turned out to be _A History of Magic_. Mary must have been pretty pleased with the outcome of Hermione learning about magic, then.

Harry watched the rest of the gathered friends and family open presents while he continued to hold Hermione, who finally relaxed into his side, her head on his shoulder. And as Harry sat there, he couldn't believe how lucky he was.

He was used to not being able to believe how unlucky he was...

But here he was on Christmas day, celebrating with his family and friends. Hermione, who had died on him and who he had probably loved all along, was in his arms, her head resting on his arm. He was in love, and everything was going far better than he could have ever foreseen his life going.

Hermione must have sensed his mood somewhat, for she glanced up at him and said, "Everything alright, Harry?"

And he smiled back at her, the genuineness of it warming his heart. He lowered his voice as he said, "I really love you, Hermione." Her face turned red as she smiled back at him in a way that let him know that smile was only for him. "I love you so much."

Hermione swallowed hard. Harry could tell she was trying to force herself to say something back, but he stopped her by saying, "I don't want anything back that you aren't ready to give, Hermione. I just wanted you to know."

She nodded to him and said, "Thanks," obviously relieved.

"Ahem," said a voice that obviously belonged to Sirius.

Harry and Hermione quickly turned, both of their faces red, to find that everybody else had finished opening their presents and were now grinning at them as they shared an intimate moment.

How mortifying.

"Yes?" Harry managed to say evenly, and Hermione buried her face in his shoulder.

James laughed out loud. "Quidditch, son. We're ready to play our annual Quidditch game, though I do say you may be otherwise occupied." He grinned at his son. "I learned first hand that it's impossible to play with a girl in your arms."

"And from whom did you learn that one, James?" Lily asked seriously, her arms folded across her chest. "You never tried to play Quidditch with me in your arms, that's for sure."

Everybody watched with interest as James blanched and said, "Er...Ah...Yes, honey, that's right." He quickly stood up. "Quidditch, anyone?"

And with that he went to dash outside, but Lily flicked her wand and James came to a complete standstill, seemingly frozen in space. Deciding to give the two some time alone, the rest of the attendees filing out into the backyard, where there were a whole array of brooms laid out.

Not only that, but the backyard had been expanded and turned into a Quidditch pitch that Harry had to guess was probably three-quarters the size of a normal field. The sun was shining bright and the backyard was absolutely devoid of snow, making Harry think that his parents must have cleared it all out considering it had been coming down pretty hard the past few days.

"Wow," Harry breathed, admiring the view.

Hermione eyed the hoops, then turned to Harry and said, "Harry, what exactly is Quidditch?"

Harry opened his mouth to give her a long-winded, in-depth explanation of what exactly Quidditch was, thought better of it, then said, "You'll see. And I'm sure somebody who isn't playing can explain to you what's going on."

Hermione nodded and said, "I didn't fly much, did I?"

Harry looked at her in surprise. It was the first time since he had told Hermione about his past that she had asked about her other self. Then he laughed. "No, you didn't. And you wouldn't tell me why. Fear of heights?"

Hermione nodded. "Me plus a broom is probably no good."

"That's fine," Harry said. "You don't have to go on any broom if you don't want to...though, I do think I'd like to take you up there at some point today."

Hermione chewed her lip for a while, looking up at Harry with concern. So he said, "Think on it while I play." And then he did something he hadn't done since the day he had confessed to her about his past; he gave her a quick kiss, relishing in the feeling of how soft and plump her lips were. "I promise you'll enjoy it."

Hermione nodded dumbly, obviously taken by surprise, as Harry grabbed a broom and hopped on, his Ravenclaw scarf Hermione had knitted him trailing behind him. As Amelia and Marcus took a seat in one of the chairs on the sideline, Lily and James came out holding hands, Lily smiling triumphantly while James looked sheepish.

"Wrapped around her finger," Sirius commented. Amelia gave him a withering look, and he quickly appeased her by saying, "Not that that's a bad thing, dear." He laughed nervously.

Harry couldn't help but laugh at Sirius. "Look who's talking, Sirius," he said, then immediately looked over at Hermione in fear. She smiled sweetly at him, and he said, "I'm wrapped around your finger and I wouldn't have it any other way."

The girls all made cooing sounds while the guys all got on Harry's case for selling his soul to the dark side. Everybody had a good laugh, and as they all settled down, James announced that the Quidditch teams were going to be decided by himself and Lily in a draft. They played rock-paper-scissors for first pick and when Lily won, she immediately chose Harry, who grinned and joined her. James picked Sirius and the two continued to alternate in their picks.

In the end, Harry was on the same team as Lily, Tonks, and Catherine on chaser while Mary was picked to play Keeper. James ended up with Sirius, Teddy, Remus, and Caitlyn, with Sirius as Seeker and Caitlyn as Keeper. Harry, to no surprise of his own or his two best friends, was his team's designated seeker.

The rules were simple enough: first to 150 points, and each catch of the snitch took 50 points away from the opposing team. In theory, this game had the opportunity to go on forever, though Harry had no doubt in his mind that he'd do well more than outplay Sirius when it came to catching the snitch.

And he did just that. It became apparent that James's team had the better chasers and keeper. Caitlyn was a monster at the goal, not letting anything through, and James, Remus, and Teddy played with a synergy that suggested they could read each other's minds. Meanwhile, Tonks was a complete mess, dropping the quaffle every time she touched it, while Mary seemed to be afraid of it, generally going in the direction opposite it, only receiving a lucky stop here and there.

It was lucky for Harry and his team, really, that he was leagues above Sirius in terms of skill. He caught the snitch a total of six times in the hour the game lasted, setting James's team back three hundred points.

As Harry did what he did best, he noticed that Amelia was rapidly explaining to her what was going on and what the rules of Quidditch were. Harry was surprised, really; for a muggle, Amelia definitely seemed to know a lot about the sport. Information she had acquired from Sirius, no doubt.

Despite setting back the opposing team two times the amount the point cap was at, Lily and Catherine only managed to score 140 points in the course of the hour. They were up two scores, sitting at 140-120, when Teddy juked Catherine hard, making her turn her broom the wrong way, and shot the quaffle straight through the middle hoop while Mary turned away.

Now it was 140-130.

The snitch hadn't made an appearance in the last ten minutes and Harry figured that if Sirius spotted it, he would be able to beat his godfather in catching it. So he flew to the level of the other chasers as Mary passed the ball out to Lily, who took it under her arm and rocketed for the other end of the field, long red hair whipping behind her. She seemed to be on par with her husband in terms of skill and aggressiveness when it came to Quidditch, and full-on body checked him, almost knocking him off his broom as he tried to stop her.

She threw the quaffle straight over to Tonks, who caught it with the tips of her fingers, surprisingly, before quickly throwing it to Catherine as Remus closed in on her. Catherine tried to get around Teddy, but it was quite obvious he was in far more control of his broom than she hers, and she smiled at him before hurling the quaffle far over Teddy's head, confusing the entire opposing team.

That is, until they spotted Harry waiting to catch it right in front of Caitlyn. Right as Harry caught the quaffle Sirius dove after the snitch, which was glinting in the afternoon sun. Harry took a deep breath and turned to face Caitlyn, who was stopped dead still in front of the posts, her eyes locked on Harry's.

Harry hurled the quaffle as hard as he could, squeezing his eyes shut so he wouldn't betray his shot with where he was looking. Just as he squeezed them shut he saw Caitlyn begin her dive, and knew that if he missed, Sirius would catch the snitch and his team would lose.

However, all of the ladies (minus Caitlyn) burst into cheers and all of the guys and Caitlyn let out a collective groan, and Harry opened his eyes to see that he had managed to score. He let out a laugh as Mary, Catherine, Tonks, and Lily all swamped him, high-fiving him and congratulating him as they descended down to the ground.

After another round of high-fives his team dispersed so they could wish the other team a good game. It seemed that James was already over it as he shook their hands, for he winked at Harry and said, "Nice flying there, Harry. We should get you a spot on the English Quidditch team."

"Oi!" Sirius called from where he was shaking his daughter's hand. "You never told me Prongslet was a seeker prodigy, Prongs! That wasn't bloody fair!"

And Amelia called from the sidelines, "Don't be upset that Harry's so much better than you, dear."

Sirius turned red before busting up laughing, then came over and gave Harry a hug. "Nice flying there, Prongslet," he said, ruffling his hair. "It was like I was on a toy broom compared to how you were flying."

Caitlyn came up next and gave him a hug too. "I don't think your dad's joking," she said, lowering her voice a little. "I played Keeper for Gryffindor for five years and I've never seen somebody fly like that. It's no wonder you were able to make the Quidditch team first year." She held him at arm's length and said, "I know a couple of England's scouts. You really should talk to one of them."

Harry scratched the back of his neck nervously. Even in the other universe, he had never been praised to this extent about his Quidditch skills. To the old Hogwarts, it must have just been another part of the Harry Potter package, that's why it didn't seem so extraordinary.

"We'll see," he finally said.

Caitlyn smiled at him, leaving Remus for last. Remus came up to him and said, "You know, Harry, when Teddy told me what had happened with you, I didn't know what to think." Harry wasn't taken by surprise with how blunt his former mentor was. That was the reaction he had expected from everyone to begin with. Then Remus continued. "But after seeing you up there and seeing you interact with everyone else, my suspicions were confirmed that you were the same old Harry."

Harry nodded slowly, then finally asked the question that had been nagging him the entire time Remus was talking to him. "Hey Remus, are you still...well...are you a werewolf?"

Remus laughed out loud. "Oh no, Harry, and I find it quite humorous that the other me was bitten," he said.

Now Harry was confused. "Then where do the Moony, Padfoot, and Prongs come from?" he asked. "In my universe, my dad and Sirius became animagi to keep you company when the full moon changed you."

Now there was a glint in Remus's eyes. "Interesting that they would go that far for me," he said. "But no, in this universe it is merely because we all decided to become animagi for the heck of it. Messing around with everybody without them knowing it was us was quite hilarious, to be honest."

Harry didn't even know why he had to ask. Of course that's why they would still have their Marauder names. Leave it up to them to become Marauders for no reason other than to create mischief.

When the round of handshakes and hugs was over, Harry went over to Hermione. "You know, you really look a lot more comfortable up in the air than you do on your feet," she said. "You actually looked really athletic."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Harry asked in mock-offense, laughing as he pulled Hermione into his arms. As he held her, he softly asked, "So what about it? Want to fly with me?"

Hermione glanced at his broom warily, and Harry whispered in her ear, "I promise I won't let you fall."

She swallowed hard, and Harry internally groaned as he remembered that 'promise' wasn't exactly Hermione's favorite word. Then he surprised her by quietly saying, "You told me you'd never break a promise."

He grinned at her, happiness filling him. "I actually _promised_that I'd never break a promise," he said cheekily.

She licked her lips, obviously on the brink of making a decision. Finally, she said, "I...I would very much like to fly, then."

Harry could tell she was saying that only because she wanted to get to know Harry more, but he was feeling pretty selfish. So he seated himself on his broom and patted the handle in front of him, and Hermione hesitated for only a moment before gingerly sitting in front of him.

Harry wrapped an arm around her waist and lifted off just a little, Hermione tensing up in front of him, going rigid. She squeezed her eyes shut once they were five feet up, though Harry had to have taken her up another forty-five feet or so.

Once he had come to a stop, he leaned forward and softly said, "It's alright, Hermione. You can open your eyes. It looks amazing."

It took a couple minutes before Hermione finally found the courage to let her eyes open, and when she did, she couldn't help but gasp.

It was _beautiful_.

The sun was in the process of setting, throwing off streaks of pink, yellow, and red through the sky, creating a perfect backdrop for London off in the distance. Hermione could see miles and miles of houses and buildings, and couldn't help but laugh a little, the light breeze teasing her hair.

Harry did nothing but watch Hermione's reaction, a smile on his face as he watched Hermione's eyes glimmer, an amazed smile on her own face. He couldn't help but admire her beauty, from her long, wavy hair, her long lashes, chocolate-brown eyes, full lips, all the way to the few freckles on her cheeks down to the graceful curve of her neck. And above all that, he could see the happiness in her eyes the most. It was the most amazing and breathtaking thing to see - that wide smile and shining eyes.

If only she could always be like that.

He knew how he could get her to stay like this, too, though it would most likely be a long and painful process. He could remember something he had learned from one of the books he had stolen from Dudley's trash, though. Something that gave him courage. It had said, '_Pain is temporary. Honor is forever.'_

Although the honor he was seeking was, in this case, actually happiness, he thought the saying applied well to this situation. If they could deal with the pain it would bring to get Mr. Granger to be the father he had previously been, he knew Hermione would be happy again.

So, his chin on Hermione's shoulder, Harry said, "I think we should visit your father, Hermione." She stiffened in his arms. "Tonight," he added.

Hermione was silent for a long while and there was a defiant set to her jaw, as if she wanted to give him a hundred different reasons why they shouldn't visit him. But, after several minutes of watching the sky grow darker and darker, Hermione whispered, "You're right. I think we should."

Harry's grip tightened around her in response to the apprehension in her voice. "I'll be with you, Hermione," he said soothingly. "And I won't let either of us get hit this time, okay?"

Hermione nodded and Harry began lowering them back to ground, deciding they had been up in the air long enough. They must have been up there longer than Harry had thought, though, since everybody else had gone inside already, leaving just the two of them in the backyard.

They went inside holding hands to find that the Lupins had already left for Tonks's parents' house and Caitlyn and Marcus had gone home early to celebrate Christmas alone, os Cat was sitting at the table boredly with her parents as they had tea and talked to Harry's parents and Mary.

At the sight of Harry and Hermione, Cat perked up, glad to have her two friends back. But they walked up to the table, which was full of smiling faces, and Harry somberly said, "We're going to be heading to Hermione's dad's to wish him a Happy Christmas."

Everybody at the table looked confused except for Mary, whose mouth thinned, and Catherine, who looked surprised.

"So..." Harry said a tad awkwardly. "We'll be heading out now. Happy Christmas."

Then a round of hugs was exchange, and when Mary hugged Harry, he swore she almost said something to him...almost.

But they bade their friends farewell and headed out, stepping outside of the house. Harry then said, "We're going to apparate again. Is that okay?"

Hermione bit her bottom lip; she hadn't liked apparation all too much the first time. She nodded in spite of that and tightened her hold around Harry, who turned on the spot. The horrible sensation of apparation squeezed around him and pulled him to the end of Mr. Granger's street, and he quickly made sure nobody had seen before giving Hermione's hand a comforting squeeze and heading towards her old house.

Hermione's breathing quickened and her hand grew sweaty as they approached the door, and Harry gave her a nervous smile as she raised her hand and knocked. There was no answer for a minute, and Hermione had to let out the breath she was holding before she rang the doorbell, holding her breath again as she did so.

When there was no answer again, Harry began to grow worried. Hermione was worried too, he could tell, and she glanced over at the car parked in the driveway.

He was home.

For some reason, Harry could tell that Mr. Granger hadn't even looked through the the peephole and decided not to talk to them - he wouldn't have passed up an opportunity to put them down.

Harry pulled out his wand, making Hermione look at him in alarm, but he merely said, "_Alohomora_."

The door unlocked with a click and the door swung open, allowing the two of them access to Hermione's dad's house. It was dark and dirty, with trash littering the walkway. A light was flickering from one of the doorways, and the two of them walked up to it to find the television on, turned down low. There was trash covering the coffee table and spilling over to the floor, making Harry feel bad Mr. Granger. This was the state of his life right now - it was no wonder he was confused about his role as a father.

They entered the room to find Mr. Granger laying on the couch, passed out with a beer in his hand. His jaw was covered in stubble and he was frowning and fidgeting in his sleep.

Hermione slowly walked up to him and kneeled down next to him so she could put her hand on his forehead, calming his fidgeting and making his breathing even. She kissed his forehead before standing up and going back to Harry's side, squeezing his hand with a sort of feral desperation. Harry squeezed it back and looked over to find Hermione with tears in her eyes as she looked at her dad, who had drank so much on Christmas, alone, that he was completely passed out.

Harry sighed and raised his wand, then cast a levitating charm on the passed out man. He floated him up the stairs, Hermione in awe at his side, and floated him all the way to the immaculate master bedroom, where he set Mr. Granger down carefully on his bed. Hermione ran to his side and tucked him in, then put a sealed envelope on his bedside table.

Harry looked at Hermione quizzically as she returned to him, to which she whispered, "Later."

The two of them headed back downstairs, where Hermione turned the television off and turned on the lights. She ran into the kitchen and got a trash bag, which she hung on the mantle with practiced ease.

Harry grabbed her wrist to stop her as she started to pick up some of the trash. He said, "As much as I want you to get along with your father again, I don't fancy spending the rest of my Christmas here. Do you want me to tidy this up really quickly?"

Hermione nodded and stepped aside, leaving Harry to wave his wand over the trash, making it all fly into the trash bag. He then levitated the trash bag to the trash bin in the back, which Hermione directed him to. When that was done the two of them turned off the lights again and headed outside, and Harry magically locked the door behind them.

"Happy Christmas," Harry said oddly to the door, feeling good that he had managed to put aside his hatred of the man for long enough to help Hermione out.

Hermione slid her hand into his. "Happy Christmas," she said sadly, reaching out and touching the door.

Harry took his hand out of hers, surprising her until he put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to him, prompting her to wrap an arm around his waist. They stood there staring at the door for a long while. Just as he was about ready to leave, he decided the door was missing something.

So he drew his wand in a circle in the air and a wreath appeared, which Hermione caught and hung on the nail protruding from the door. It must have been left up there for quite some time; maybe even the last time the Grangers had celebrated Christmas.

"We should visit my mum, too," Hermione said quietly, stepping back from the door into Harry's arm again.

Harry gave her shoulder a squeeze, and she smiled up sadly at him, tears in her eyes. "Let's do that tomorrow though, yeah?" she asked hoarsely.

Harry nodded somberly and apparated them back her room in the cafe, then hugged her close to him. He held her as she started quietly crying into his chest, though she tried to hide it. Harry rubbed her back nonetheless, and the two stood like that for an indeterminate amount of time.

"It'll be better by the time next Christmas rolls around, Hermione," he said, and tilted her chin up so she could see his loving smile. "I promise."

Before Hermione had a chance to respond, there was a knock on Hermione's room door. "Come in," she called.

Mary opened the door and quickly went to close it again, saying, "Oh! Sorry, thought it was just you, Hermione."

"No, please," Harry said, detaching himself from his girlfriend. "Come in."

Mary sheepishly reentered the room with a letter clutched in her hands, and told Hermione, "I was looking through my mail from a couple days ago just now and saw one was for you, Hermione."

She offered it to Harry, who felt his heart miss a beat as he saw that it was from the Harvard University Dean of Admissions. Hermione's focus completely shifted to the letter and her hands began to shake as she opened it.

Harry had mixed feelings about this, to be honest. If she was accepted, it would be great for Hermione, but she would have to move to the states. In the other universe, Harry would have had no problem heading over to the U.S. with her. But in this universe, Harry had his family to think about. Could he be content with only spending a year near them before moving out to America with Hermione for four years, maybe more? He honestly didn't know the answer to that at this point.

On the other hand, Hermione would become pretty upset if she was rejected. It would be a bit easier on him in the long run in terms of his own happiness, but he didn't want to sacrifice Hermione's happiness for his own. He would much rather have her be happy.

Hermione, meanwhile, held her breath as she pulled the letter out, turning it over so the writing was facing her.

She scanned it for a few seconds, and then...

"I've been accepted!"

**A/N: Don't know what to say this time around. Please review, I guess. ****If you feel like it. If you want to make a poor little movie theater employee happy as he braces himself to deal with the Twilight Midnight he has to work tomorrow...**


	12. Paint it Black

**A/N: I'm terribly sorry for this horrendously tardy update. Finals have sucked every last ounce of energy out of me and I've been having family issues on top of that. But everything's wrapping up quite nicely here, so I finally have time to write! Yay! I missed you all so so much!**

**Also, I made the mistake of trying to forge on with this story when I had no design or purpose in mind, and for that I apologize. During this time, I have thought hard and discovered exactly where I wish to take this story, and I hope you all enjoy the result!**

**Chapter 12 - Paint it Black**

Harry took Hermione's hand in his own and gave it a squeeze before opening the large door of the castle, then walked in with her. Nostalgia washed over him in waves as he took in the dull walls and moving paintings, and he stepped further into the castle as Hermione looked all around her in awe.

This was a slightly new experience to Harry, if only because he was now back as Hermione's boyfriend, and the fact that she was new to this whole thing, of course. She was taking in everything around them as Harry led her through the castle, explaining moving pictures and other magical items that filled the school. He told her about their antics and some of their harrowing adventures, though Hermione noticed that he tiptoed around death and whatever happened during his last school year. Class was in session, meaning that the two didn't encounter anybody in their journey through the school.

Harry was sad he couldn't show Hermione the common room the two had used for their stay in school, since he wasn't a Gryffindor and all, but told her about their favorite classes and whatnot instead. He bragged that he had actually received better marks than her in Defense Against the Dark Arts, and as he grinned at her Hermione couldn't help but feel pleased that she had made such an amazing friend, both in this universe and Harry's home universe.

When they passed the classroom for Defense Against the Dark Arts, the door was open and a pale-skinned man with a hooked nose was standing behind the desk, the students in complete silence as they gave him their undivided attention.

Harry didn't seemed to have noticed him, but the man interested Hermione, so she asked, "Hey Harry, who's that professor?"

Harry stopped, turned to look into the room, and then...his jaw dropped. "Snape?" he said, confused.

The teacher stopped what he was doing to look at Harry, then a big grin split his face. "Harry!" he said happily, sweeping around his students to give Harry a hug that wasn't returned.

When Hermione looked at her boyfriend, she saw that he was completely and utterly confused, looking at Snape like he had no idea why he was hugging him. It was quite comical, really.

"Sorry I couldn't make it to Christmas, Prongslet," Snape said, patting Harry on the shoulder. "Audrey and I were too tired after the baby kept us up all night."

And now there was a look of horror on Harry's face that Snape didn't seem to notice. Hermione could tell by Harry's reaction that Snape was a polar opposite in this universe compared to the other one.

Snape finally noticed Hermione at this point. "Ah! And who might this be?" he asked, holding out his hand to Hermione.

Hermione took it as Harry finally found his wits and said, "Uh...Professor Snape, this is Hermione Granger, my girlfriend. Hermione, S-Severus Snape, my Defense Against the Dark Arts instructor."

Snape winked at Hermione, and she couldn't help but instantly like this man. "His favorite uncle, too," he said conspiratorially.

And when Snape stood up, he nudged Harry with his elbow and said, "And quite a good catch, Prongslet. Well done."

Harry was still looking at Snape as if the man had grown a second head. "Thanks," he said dully, and Snape gave him an odd look before inviting him into the classroom to give Hermione an opportunity to see how classes inside the castle were conducted.

Harry said they'd come into the class in just a minute, and Snape allowed them their privacy to go back to teaching his class. As soon as he started speaking again, Hermione turned to Harry and said, "What's wrong, Harry?"

Harry was apparently still surprised, not taking his eyes off Snape as if the moment he looked away the man would turn into an alien and start devouring the students.

"Professor Snape..." Harry began, collecting his thoughts. "He was the meanest, cruelest teacher at the school. He hated me with a ferocity that was unrivaled even by the Dark Lord himself."

Hermione recoiled a bit as she looked over at the nice man she had just a met, a smile on his face as he taught his class with energy and humor. "That doesn't even seem possible."

Harry shrugged and grabbed her hand. "Believe me, I wouldn't have guessed that one in a thousand years. Let's just take it as it is and sit in, I guess."

Hermione nodded and joined Harry in entering the classroom, the students not noticing them as they took empty seats at the back. Snape was currently giving a lecture on dementors to a group of wide-eyed third years, giving him their undivided attention. It was a sight to behold, to be honest. Harry had never seen Snape display such emotion or energy. While his hair was still dark and greasy, it seemed that his personality had become the exact opposite. There was a smile on his face and House Points at the ready whenever a student managed to answer a question, and soft words for students that answered a question incorrectly, even going so far as to give some of them a chance to redeem themselves with a different question.

He even had swayed Harry's opinion of him to the point that his previously most hated professor got him to go up to the front of the class to give the students a demonstration as to how to cast a proper Patronus. Harry ended up teaching the class for the last twenty minutes, with Snape taking notes of his own and nodding approvingly and appreciatively the entire time. The good part about that for Harry was that Hermione was watching him raptly the entire time, smiling. He had impressed her, which was no small feat in his eyes, with as smart as she was.

When the class ended and all of the students had left, Snape told Harry, "You know, Prongslet, you wouldn't make a half-bad teacher here." He looked at Harry pointedly. "Consider it."

Harry nodded and bade Snape goodbye, pulling Hermione with him as he left the classroom. They were due for their appointment with Dumbledore in a few minutes, so they began walking down the halls in the direction of his office, hand in hand.

Harry loved holding hands with Hermione, and had no problems admitting it. Her hand was so soft and warm, and fit so comfortably in his. It was incredibly comfortable and just seemed so natural that he couldn't consider walking next to her without doing it. He loved every second he spent with her and was glad he had ditched school, no matter how important it was, to find her and realize his feelings and get her to realize her own. He had loved every moment that they had been a couple, and, to be honest, it was just a tiny bit frightening just how much he loved her. He couldn't believe he had never known his feelings beforehand, and thought that all of it might have just been a little more bearable had he known previously.

Then again, her death in the other dimension might have very well broken him if he had realized his feelings beforehand. He had almost broken without those feelings known, and was incredibly happy he had a second chance with her.

As he thought about their relationship, most of which blossomed and occurred while at work in the cafe, Harry realized a grievous error that needed to be rectified immediately.

"Hermione..." he said slowly, looking at her oddly. She smiled at him, and his heart fluttered before he said, "I just realized something."

"And what would that be?" she asked as he led her through a shortcut. Classes were switching, and Harry would rather not be stopped and questioned five hundred times before they reached Dumbledore's office.

"I just realized that we've been going out for three and half months now and we haven't been on a date," he said.

Hermione remained quiet for a moment, Harry thinking she just needed a moment to think through their relationship to confirm his statement. When she remained silent for longer than Harry thought she would, however, a horrible suspicion bloomed in his mind.

"Oh my gosh, you've been waiting all this time for me to notice, haven't you?" he asked, mentally berating himself. He was such an idiot sometimes.

Hermione hesitated before answering. "Well, I will admit that I've already thought about this a couple times already," she said, her cheeks turning red. She hastily tried to appease Harry as she saw the look of horror and self-loathing on his face. "But I mean, we spend a lot of time together, you know? We don't really need to go on dates as it is."

Harry was having none of it. He still couldn't believe that he had forgotten something important as actually dating. "No, Hermione," he said. "That's unacceptable on my part. We're going out this week, okay?"

And Hermione smiled an amazingly beautiful yet equally shy smile, one that made Harry's heart flutter again. Now that was one hell of a smile. "I'm looking forward to it," she said, giving his hand a light squeeze.

"I am too," he confessed as they exited through a narrow gap behind a suit of armor. They walked down a hallway and came face to face with a stone gargoyle, and Harry realized at that moment that he didn't know the password to Dumbledore's study.

To their good luck, though, the gargoyle moved aside and Hagrid stepped out, a smile on his face. "Hey, it's Harry!" he said, nudging Harry on the shoulder (and almost knocking both Harry and Hermione down in the process). "I take it this is the beautiful young lady you left school for?" he asked, holding his hand out to Hermione, who smiled back and shook it.

Harry felt his stomach drop to his feet. Though Hermione was smiling, she was shooting daggers at Harry with her eyes. He had hoped she wouldn't catch that last bit from Hagrid, but, sharp as ever, she hadn't missed it at all. He had been irresponsible and told her that he had left school because Dumbledore had sent on him to learn all he could out in the real world. He just knew Hermione wouldn't be happy if he left school because of her.

Perhaps Hagrid could sense Harry's mood or he had just realized that he had made a mistake, but he laughed nervously and said, "Well, I have to go back and prepare a class now. Best of luck to both of you."

And he went down the hall after an apologetic look to Harry. It turned out that although Hagrid seemed to be able to speak English better and shaved his beard, he was still the same old Hagrid where it counted.

"What did he mean?" Hermione asked coldly, her hand no longer in his. "What did he mean when he said that you left school because of me?"

"Ah...w-well..." Harry began, bringing his hand up to scratch the back of his neck nervously. This was not going to be good. "Can we talk about this later?" he mumbled, not meeting her eyes. He didn't have a good enough argument to sway her opinion on this one.

"You and I both know you still have six minutes until our meeting with your Headmaster. Now tell me what he meant," Hermione demanded, touching his face so he was forced to meet her eyes.

He couldn't lie to those and she knew it. "I, uh...well...I may have...er...left school so I could find you," he said. She tried to talk, but Harry cut her off. "Listen, Hermione. After everything I went through, I knew more than I could have possibly learned during another year here. It would have been a year wasted. Dumbledore sent me off himself, telling me just that."

"I don't like this," she said, a sad look in her eyes. "Why would you miss your education for...well...me?"

"Because I love you," Harry said with determination. Now that he could answer and be proud of it. "I love you and there was no way school was keeping me from getting to you as soon as possible."

There were tears in Hermione's eyes, though Harry didn't know if they were due to happiness or something else. "On top of throwing away your last year of magical education, you lied to me," she whispered, betrayed, and now Harry's heart really plummeted.

He had grown so accustomed to her acting like the old Hermione that he had tricked himself into believing that she was exactly the same. The old Hermione wouldn't have cared about a little white lie like this, and would have known it was because Harry would have wanted to avoid a confrontation such as the one he and the new Hermione were having. The conversation would have been over there, with Hermione remarking on Harry being irresponsible. Sure, he would have felt a little guilty, but it was nothing compared to this.

Harry now knew what those tears were. They were tears of hurt. He had lied to her over something stupid when she hated nothing more than liars. He had projected the old Hermione onto her like an idiot and had fallen into bad habits. He needed to remind himself that this was the Hermione who resided in this dimension and who he still loved just as much as the old Hermione. He was a fool for forgetting, and it was more than a little disconcerting that he had done so.

He hugged Hermione, pulling her close to him, burying her head in his shoulder. She resisted at first, but when Harry began apologizing in her ear and telling her how much of an idiot he was and how much he loved her, she returned the hug with desperation, clutching his shirt with no intention of letting go anytime soon.

"I'm so sorry, Hermione," he repeated, despising himself and his stupid brain. "I love you so much and I didn't mean to hurt you. I promise I won't do it again."

This time, thankfully, she talked back. "Your promises are becoming more and more extravagant," she mumbled into his shoulder. "You just made a promise not to hurt me again. Don't make promises you can't keep."

Harry tightened his hold on her. "I intend to keep this one no matter what I have to do," he replied, then pulled back to look into her eyes, which were slightly red

She pouted slightly. "I think it's irresponsible to promise something that may not fall under your control in the future," she said quietly, turning her eyes away.

"I'll make sure I'm in control, Hermione," he said. "I'll make sure I'm never in a situation that will end up in you getting hurt."

Hermione really looked troubled, which was worrying Harry. Why did she look so...doubtful of him? Honestly, it hurt a little. Didn't she know the extent to which he would go to keep this promise?

She collected her thoughts for a moment, then, right when she opened her mouth to speak...

"Ah, Mr. Potter," Dumbledore's voice said from his right, and his head whipped around to look at his headmaster with a smile on his face. He bowed slightly at Hermione. "And you must be the lovely Miss Granger that Mr. Potter spoke so highly of."

Hermione smiled at the old man in return, but Harry could tell in the tightness of her smile that she was still upset with him. Honestly, it made Harry feel like crap. He was an idiot and he knew it. He should have never lied.

"Nice to meet you, sir," Hermione said, accepting his outstretched hand. "Harry's told me a lot about you and your wonderful school. Thank you for giving me a chance to see it."

"The pleasure is mine," Dumbledore said humbly. "Now, if you two could join me up in my office, I'd like to have a little chat with you."

Harry, his interest as to why Dumbledore called him in again piqued especially since Hermione was being included in the discussion, followed his headmaster onto the top stair and beckoned Hermione, who looked a tad reluctant, to join him. When she got to the step, she looked up at where Dumbledore's door was, which was a good fifteen feet above them, and her eyebrows creased in confusion. She jumped slightly when the stairs began moving, and she grabbed on to Harry's arm reflexively before snatching her hand back, sending confusion and hurt swirling through his brain.

He glanced over at her to find her avoiding his eyes and looking sad, and a bit of fear wormed its way into his system. He knew lying was bad, but could tell that wasn't the whole story. What had her so torn up like this?

He was dying to ask her, but figured doing so in front of Dumbledore wasn't the best way to resolve the issue. So he followed Dumbledore into his office, and sat with Hermione in front of his desk as Dumbledore took his own seat.

"Now, Harry," Dumbledore began, looking at Harry intently, almost as if this was a one-on-one conversation. "The reason I called you in today is to discuss your future."

"My...future?" Harry said, slightly confused. Not only was Dumbledore taking personal interest in his life post-Hogwarts, but he realized he actually had a future in this universe. He had been so preoccupied in finding and bonding with Hermione that he had completely forgotten he had a future that was attainable. Before the change in universes, he had never really entertained the notion of a future. Such a luxury would be unavailable to him considering his  
circumstances.

Dumbledore nodded and steepled his fingers together. "And that is why I wanted Miss Granger to be included in the discussion," he said. "I wanted her to see the school, yes, but I think she could do well in giving you direction and could really contribute quite a bit to the topic."

Harry nodded, resisting the urge to glance at her because he was afraid of what he would see on her face. He hated it when she was disappointed.

Dumbledore studied Harry's reaction for a moment before his eyes flickered over to Hermione. Harry didn't have to look at her to know she was giving his headmaster her full attention.

"So I'll ask it bluntly," Dumbledore continued. Harry didn't know if Dumbledore had sensed the slight tension between them, and if he had he made nothing of it. "What do you want to do after Hogwarts, Harry?"

And for the second time in a row that he had been asked this question, he was stumped. "I...I'm not sure, sir," he admitted.

Dumbledore studied him for a moment, then said, "I received a patronus from Professor Snape that let me know you were helping him teach his class." Harry listened closely, interested in what his headmaster had to say. "I went down and watched you for a few minutes, disillusioned of course so I wouldn't startle you, and I have to say I was fairly impressed at how well you were able to teach an especially rowdy group of teenagers."

"Thank you sir," Harry said quickly, the praise warming his heart. He didn't know why, but whenever he impressed Dumbledore or made him proud he felt good inside. "I'm honored."

Dumbledore waved his hand. "You're a natural," he said. "So, given that, I thought I'd recommend to you a special teacher training program offered in London, taught by myself during the summers. Assuming you do well on your N.E.W.T.s, I could very easily envision you teaching here in the future."

Harry was surprised by that one. Him, a teacher? Then again, now that he thought about it that was the first thing that had popped to mind when it came to the D.A. back in his fourth year. He finally glanced over at Hermione to find her looking at him intently, so intently, in fact, that it took her several seconds to realized he had looked over at her, and when she did she looked away with disinterest.

Harry sighed, but was pulled out of his thoughts by Dumbledore reaching into his desk drawer and pulling out a small piece of paper. As he handed the paper to Harry, which turned out to be a letter in an envelope, he asked Hermione, "Would you agree with my assessment, Miss Granger?"

Hermione nodded quickly, a small smile on her face. "I think Harry makes an excellent teacher. He had my full attention and I can't even perform magic." Then she blushed. "Though I think some of that might be a girlfriend's and scholar's bias."

Harry was glad Hermione didn't seem to be too angry with him to say nice things about him at the moment, and even stuck with saying she was his girlfriend, and the slight knot in his stomach loosened a bit. Whatever this was, they could work through it.

Harry opened the envelope and looked at the letter, which contained an address and a date and time. "June 20th," Harry read aloud. He looked up at Dumbledore. "What is this?"

"An invitation," Dumbledore replied. "If you go to the address at the date and time described while holding the envelope, you will be able to pass through the magical barrier and begin attending my teaching lessons," he explained. "That is, if you want to of course," he added.

Harry digested what Dumbledore told him before saying, "And what if I decide I'm not ready this year, but am interested later down the line?"

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. "If you miss this date, the letter will correct itself once I determine the date for next year. Professor Lupin held onto his letter for almost five years before he finally came for instruction."

"I see," Harry said slowly.

"You've been studying, I hope?" Dumbledore asked, and Harry could sense the sternness of the question.

"I have been," Harry affirmed before smiling wryly. "Though I can't say the same for Catherine or Teddy."

Dumbledore nodded somberly. "I'll be having this talk with them too, though I am sad that I need to impress upon them the importance of their N.E.W.T.s when they've been hearing about them for the past seven years of their lives." He turned to Hermione. "And what do you think about all of this, Miss Granger?" he asked.

With the information Dumbledore had been feeding him, Harry had almost forgotten Hermione was in the room with them. She said, "I could see Harry teaching. I think, though, that above everything, he should think about this long and hard and determine what he would like to do rather than doing something that he doesn't particularly like but is good at."

Dumbledore nodded emphatically. "Couldn't have said it better myself," he said merrily. Then he met Harry's eyes seriously. "Take what Miss Granger says to heart, Mr. Potter," he said. "Far too many people sacrifice what has the power to make them happy so they can do something that might get them more money or less work to do. How can that be called living?"

Harry nodded in awe, unsurprised that his girlfriend and Dumbledore were on the same wavelength, and that wavelength involved spouting words of wisdom. They were truly two-of-a-kind.

"Thank you, sir," Harry said, standing up.

Dumbledore stood up as well, and took Harry's hand. "It's my pleasure, Harry," he said, sounding a bit tired. "Far too many students neglect what is important and, as a result, end up leading lives that aren't nearly as fulfilling as they had hoped. Have a pleasant day."

"You too, sir," Harry said as he took Hermione's hand and began leading her back toward the staircase. "It was nice seeing you!" he called as the staircase took them back down.

Harry looked over at Hermione, who met his eyes with mixed emotions. Harry felt his spirits drop, but only so much. She wasn't pulling her hand out of his, which meant that this was definitely something that could be worked through. He just needed to get her to tell him exactly what was wrong.

Harry was still looking at Hermione when he got off of the stairs, so didn't notice that people were waiting for him when he stepped into the hallway. Hermione did, though, and immediately stopped, which prevented Harry from walking into one of them.

"Look what we have here," a familiar voice said. Harry looked at the two blocking their path to find none other than Malfoy and Ron. "A Ravenclaw and his muggle pet."

Harry internally sighed. Why did Malfoy think he was so tough? How long would it take for him to realize he was fighting a losing battle? "What do you want, Malfoy?" Harry said boredly, though his hand was wrapped tightly around the handle of his wand. Though Malfoy was an idiot, he was known to do absolutely evil things. He met Malfoy's eyes, a challenge in his own. "You still angry about losing to me in Quidditch?"

Malfoy's face scrunched in anger. "At least I didn't cry like you did last year," he said triumphantly.

Honestly, if that had actually happened to Harry, he would be mortified right now. But that had happened to the other Harry, thus didn't really bother him at all. Instead, Harry's smirk reached his mouth this time. "Don't lie, Malfoy," he said. "You and I both know there were tears in your eyes last time I was here."

Malfoy faltered, and Ron's head snapped to look over at him in shock. Then Malfoy laughed a wavering laugh that sounded pretty pitiful. "You may be able to beat me in Quidditch," Malfoy said, "But with no second there's no way you can beat me in a duel."

Harry froze, pushing Hermione behind him a bit. He could take these two on by himself with no problem at all, but knew that would be putting Hermione in harm's way. She couldn't do magic and would have no way to protect herself.

And so Harry swallowed his pride. He didn't care what Ron or Malfoy thought of him if it meant Hermione would be safe. He shrugged. "Probably," he admitted, lying. "And I'm alright with that."

Hermione's hand gripped his harder. She knew what he was doing.

"Haha, what a loser!" Ron said, slapping Malfoy's back. "No pride at all."

My pride is Hermione, Harry thought to himself, and said, "Well, if that's all..."

He began to back up, keeping himself in between the guys and Hermione. He knew they would try to curse him as soon as he turned his back. They were weak like that.

"Not so fast," Malfoy said, a grin on his face. "It's time for you to face humiliation after what you did to me in front of half the school." He raised his wand. "Petrificus Totalus!"

There was absolutely nothing Harry could do to protect Hermione if he was incapacitated. He had no idea what the two of them would do with her, and, to be honest, had no intention of finding out. He whipped his wand out of his pocket and casted a shielding charm nonverbally. Malfoy's curse rebounded off and slammed into the ceiling. As the two idiots stared at where the spell hit, Harry shouted "Stupefy!" and Malfoy flew back a few feet onto his back, unconscious.

Ron took the opportunity to cast a stunning spell of his own, and Harry slashed his wand through the air, vaporizing the redhead's magic. Ron looked surprised for a second. Harry didn't have it in himself to curse Ron directly, so resorted to disarming him, catching his wand when it flew to him.

Ron looked stunned, while Malfoy, was...well...literally stunned, unconscious on the floor. Harry sneered at his former friend, adrenaline coursing through his veins. He was seeing red. He was angry beyond reason, beyond frustration at the fact that they had tried to take him on when there was a muggle present. That was dangerous.

"Hey, idiot," Harry said. While he wouldn't curse Ron, he had no problem calling him various names. He held up Ron's wand. "I'm hiding this on my way out. Good luck finding it."

Ron gulped, and Harry pulled Hermione along with him as he left the corridor, anger still surging through his veins. That wasn't supposed to happen. He was just supposed to admit to them that they were better and they were supposed to leave him alone. Why were they so stupid? Was it some sort of contagious disease in this universe?

Most of all, though, he was angry at himself for allowing Hermione to be in a situation that she was put in danger.

"Harry!" Hermione said, wrenching her hand out of his.

Harry stopped and whirled on her. "What?" he snapped, still agitated.

She was nursing the hand that had been in his with her other hand. Had he been squeezing her hand that hard? "You need to calm down," she said soothingly, reaching up and smoothing back his hair. "Take a deep breath."

Harry did just that, trying his best to calm down, though he was now angry at himself for practically crushing her hand. He just couldn't do anything right.

All of his anger immediately evaporated when Hermione hugged him, pressing his head over her shoulder. He hugged her back tightly, taking in her amazing scent as he took in another deep breath. He didn't know anything could smell so peaceful and soothing.

"It's okay, Harry," she assured him in his ear. "You did everything you could. You can't help it if they're looking to pick a fight."

Harry swallowed, choking down words of self-doubt that rose in his throat. He didn't think Hermione would appreciate them. "I know," he admitted. "I just thought that if I laid down my pride, you would be out of harm's way. I'm sorry for being so angry."

He felt her smile, warming his entire body as she did so. "I know," she said. "And I'm honored you would lay down your pride for me. That must have been hard to do."

"Just a bit," Harry said quietly, coaxing them to share a chuckle.

Hermione pulled back to look at his face, a smile still on hers. "And I have to admit that you looked really cool when you were doing magic." She blushed a bit. "You looked like you were in your element."

Harry sighed slightly, a more sad smile on his own face. "As cool as it must be, I kind of wish something so dangerous didn't put me in my element." Then a thought hit him. "Hey, what was bothering you so much when we were in Dumbledore's office?"

Hermione hesitated, her smile faltering. Finally she shook her head. "It's no big deal," she said. "Plus, the way you fought them and protected me at the same time resolved my concerns." An even bigger smile bloomed on her face. "I know you won't do anything to hurt me."

Harry knew she was adding the word 'intentionally' in her own mind, and he accepted that as a fact. In retrospect, maybe it was a little immature to promise that he would never hurt her. Pain was unavoidable in a relationship. After all, pain is caused by mistakes and no human is so perfect that they make none.

So he asked, "Can I amend my promise?"

She nodded, her eyes locked on his. Harry's breath caught in his throat. Her eyes, such a warm shade of brown and filled with so much intelligence, were truly breathtaking.

"I promise to love you for the rest of my life and promise to do everything in my power to avoid hurting you," he said.

Hermione's eyes filled with tears, which had Harry concerned for a moment until she smiled shakily and wiped at her eyes. She chuckled and her voice trembled as she said, "You just broke it up into two promises."

"And is that a bad thing?" Harry asked cheekily, glad that they were in a hallway that was still somehow unoccupied other than themselves.

"No," Hermione said, unshed tears still making her eyes glisten. "I think that's an amazing thing."

And she leaned forward, pressing her lips against Harry's, her arms wrapping around his neck. Harry wrapped his own arms around her, lightly moving his mouth against hers. He was so happy he had left school to find her.

And he was even happier that he had asked her out on a date later in the week.

He couldn't wait.

**A/N: So we have a date, Harry's future, Cat and Teddy, Hermione's father, and Hermione's future all slated to be brought to the forefront as we steadily build towards the climax! I'm just as excited about writing this now as Harry is about his date with Hermione!**

**Thank you so much for reading and I hope you review if you have a moment, even if I don't deserve it because of the insanely long wait!**


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